Back in September last year, Desire Doue has never played in the Champions League in his career. At the age of 19, all he knew about famous sounds from the world's top club tournament was watching these matches on TV.
9 months later, Doue was the king of Europe, shining in the final against Inter Milan with 2 goals and 1 assist. No one could have imagined that a 19-year-old player would shine so brilliantly, despite all the pressure.
No player in history has done that at such a young age in the Champions League final or European Cup.
There was a doubt ahead of the final over who would start PSG on the right wing, between Doue and Bradley Barcola. Coach Luis Enrique made the right choice when Doue tortured Inter Milan's defense. Federico Dimarco cannot cope with the French talent.
Against Inter Milan, Doue's performance became a key factor in deciding the fate of the match. In the 12th minute of the Champions League final, Doue entered the penalty area and passed to Achraf Hakimi to score.
8 minutes later, the player born in 2005 continued to make his mark with a double for PSG. Finally, Doue completed his double against Inter in the 63rd minute.
When Doue started playing for Rennes in Ligue 1 at the age of 16, his talent was very clear, but lacked stability and goalscoring. PSG invested €50 million in Doue last summer.
Enrique is confident that he can turn Doue into a world-class player. There is still a lot of work to do, but the 19-year-old is now ready to step into the light.
Known as "the little Neymar" for his impressive dribbling ability, Doue also has different outstanding qualities. That is the modern football mindset and assassin instinct.
In October last year, Doue started against Arsenal in the Champions League. PSG were defeated and Doue seemed to be overshadowed.
Doue's father told ESPN after the Emirates game: "Tonight, he didn't play well but he will work harder and be ready for games like this soon."
At this time, Doue's opponent for the world's best young player award is Lamine Yamal. And this will be a remarkable battle for many years to come.
This season, Doue has played 54 matches in all competitions, scoring 15 goals and 16 assists. The University's remarkable achievement of the 2005-born player helped PSG fans quickly forget Kylian Mbappe.
The Doue name quickly created a fever on social networks after the Champions League final. Fans immediately discovered that interestingly, "Desire" in French means " mong muon" or "khung khuc" in English. Meanwhile, "Doue" means "natural energy". The full name can be temporarily translated as "thirst for natural capacity".
According to Opta, Doue is the sixth player to have both scored and assisted in a Champions League final, and the youngest player in history to do so (19 years, 362 days).
Before Doue, only two other players had done this. They are Patrick Kluivert (1995) and Carlos Alberto (2004).
Doue's current contract with PSG will last until the summer of 2029. With his impressive form in recent times, Doue has been considered by PSG to extend his contract with a significantly higher salary and an increase in release fee.
When asked about manager Enrique after the final, Doue gave special praise: "He has been here for two years and has made history for the club. tactically and mentally, he is a great manager, incredible, and a great person.
It is an honor to work with him. I don't know how we will celebrate, but it will definitely be a crazy party."
