Damien Le Tallec’s biography, net worth, fact, career, awards and life story

Damien Le Tallec (born 19 April 1990 in Poissy) is a French football player who plays for Red Star Belgrade. He is the younger brother of striker Anthony Le Tallec, and cousin of Florent Sinama Pongolle. Like his older brother, Le Tallec is a France youth international, first appearing with the under-15 team and has appeared in several tournaments around the world for his nation. He primarily plays as a striker and is capable of playing on both wings.

Football career

Early career

Like his older brother, Damien began his career at Le Havre joining the club at only five years of age. He spent a full decade at the club and began drawing interests from several clubs in Ligue 1. He eventually joined Stade Rennais F.C., who were known for the promising youth academy.

Rennes

Le Tallec quickly established himself at the club joining fellow prospects Yann M’Vila, Yohann Lasimant, Abdoul Camara, and Yacine Brahimi as the club’s most promising players. The foursome were particularly instrumental in the club’s successes on the youth level helping their age groups win the 2006 edition of the under-16 Tournoi Carisport, as well as capturing the under-18 championship for the 2006–07 season, and also winning the Coupe Gambardella in 2008 scoring an impressive eight goals in seven matches. In the Coupe Gamberdella final against Bordeaux, he scored the final goal in the team’s convincing 3–0 victory. Following the 2006–07 season, on 11 August, Le Tallec, alongside teammates M’Vila and Camara, signed his first professional contract agreeing to a three-year deal. He spent the entire season in the reserves, before being officially promoted to the senior squad and assigned the number 22 shirt for the 2008–09 season.

Though on the first-team, Le Tallec began the season with the club’s Championnat de France amateur team. He appeared in 22 matches scoring four goals helping the side finish 1st among professional clubs in their group, thus qualifying for the playoffs, where they lost to Lyon in the semi-finals.

Borussia Dortmund

Following the season, news came that Le Tallec had become unsettled at Rennes, primarily due to his limited first-team opportunities at the club. Eager to begin his professional career, he was primarily linked to La Liga club Valencia and was reportedly in the process of joining the club, but due to a shake up in the club’s front office, the move was put on hold and eventually called off. He was later linked with moves to German clubs Hertha BSC and VfB Stuttgart. Two months later, on 8 August 2009, another German club, Borussia Dortmund, announced that they had signed the player to a three-year contract and that he will be gradually introduced to the first team.

Nantes

On January 31, 2012, Le Tallec returned to France signing with Nantes in Ligue 2.

Hoverla

The following two seasons Le Tallec played with FC Hoverla Uzhhorod in the Ukrainian Premier League. The club had just won the second tier last season and were searching for reinforcements, among them, Le Tallec. Despite the fact that during the two seasons Le Tallec spent in Uzhhorod Hoverla Hoverla performed rather mid-down table, Le Tallec was regular and his performances caught the attention of numerous clubs.

Mordovia

In summer 2014 he moved to Russia and signed with Premier League side FC Mordovia Saransk. Mordovia had just won the second tier and got promoted to the Premier League. Same as in Hoverla, at Mordovia Le Tallec also performed regularly. By the winter-break of the 2015–16 season, coach Miodrag Božović, a good cognosceaur of Russian football as he had just spent 8 years coaching in Russian Premier League, was in held of Serbian side Red Star Belgrade who were forming a strong team in order to take the title from their main rivals FK Partizan who had become chronic winners in the last decade, and in that built-up of the team, Božović marked as prioritarian the signing of Mordovian duo, Le Tallec and Mitchell Donald, and both ended up moving to Belgrade.

Red Star Belgrade

On January 29, 2016, Le Tallec signed a 2.5-year contract with Red Star Belgrade. In his league debut with Red Star less than a month later, he scored a goal against FK Mladost Lučani. At the end of his first season at Red Star, they won the Serbian championship and qualified for a berth in the Champions League qualifying rounds.

Having played most of the former season as central midfielder, along Mitchell Donald, since start of the 2016–17 season, Le Tallec was often addapted as central defender by Red Star coach Miodrag Božović.

International career

Le Tallec has featured for all of France’s national youth teams beginning with the under-15 team earning his first selection in March 2006. He was a member of the under-17 team that reached the semi-finals at the 2007 UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship before losing to England. He scored two goals in the tournament, both of them in the same game against Germany. He later played with the same under-17 team at the 2007 FIFA U-17 World Cup held in South Korea. Le Tallec appeared in all five matches scoring four goals, one against Haiti, a brace against Tunisia in the Round of 16, and one against Spain whom defeated France on penalties in the quarterfinals. In total with the under-17s, Le Tallec scored 14 goals in 18 appearances.

With the under-19 team, Le Tallec appeared in 15 matches scoring 6 goals. He scored three of those goals during the qualification process for the UEFA U-19 Championship against the Republic of Ireland, Liechtenstein, and Romania. The victory over Romania assured qualification to the tournament. At the tournament, held in the Ukraine, Le Tallec appeared in all four matches helping France reach the semi-finals before suffering defeat to England.

Career statistics

Club

As of 14 December 2016

Honours

Club

Rennes

• Coupe Gambardella (1): 2008

Borussia Dortmund

• Bundesliga (1): 2010–11

Red Star

• Serbian SuperLiga (1): 2015–16

• ^ Damien Le Tallec at Soccerway