Various reports are linking French Celtic striker Odsonne Edouard with summer moves to Arsenal, Tottenham, Leicester City and Borussia Dortmund.
It is no surprise that Edouard is receiving much acclaim and attention currently, his current record at the Scottish champions since his move to Celtic Park in 2018 reads at 65 goals in 128 games making him one of Europe’s deadliest marksmen within a period of two years. He’s started the new Scottish Premier League campaign in the same fashion he left the previous, scoring a scintilating hat trick against Hamilton Academical.
That’s just over a goal every two games, and at 22-years of age, his ceiling will only get higher when he eventually joins a top level European side.
Last season, he recorded 27 goals in 42 games across all competitions, 22 of those have come in the Scottish Premiership making him the leagues top scorer.
The Scottish season may have started early, but its unclear whether Edouard will still be at the club come October, with a prolonged transfer window well under way.
So who is the talented forward? What’s his style of play? Which club will he fit in at?
Who is Odsonne Edouard?
Born in Kourou, a French Guiana commune overseas region of France located in South America. He joined the Paris Saint-Germain academy in in 2011 at the age of 13 from amateur side AF Bobigny. During the 2013/14 came his first notable contribution, scoring a staggering 25 goals in 22 appearances at U17 level in the National Championships. He followed that up the following season, scoring 22 goals in 14 appearances for the U17s and was apart of the squad which triumphed at the Al Kass Cup, ending the competition with 3 goals in 5 outings.
Edouard also represented the U19s, playing two UEFA Youth League games, a Coupe Gambardella outing and seven U19 Championship matches during which he scored seven goals. In two years, he scored more than 60 goals for the club at youth level, earning him the nicknames of “The Rocket” and “Magic Odsonne” for his unbelievable goal scoring prowess.
In April 2016, he signed his first professional contract with Paris Saint-Germain’s senior side. During the 2016/17 preseason, he was included in the squad for the International Champions Cup. He came on against Leicester in the competition in the 79th minute, scoring his first goal which made it 4-0. As a result, Paris Saint-Germain were indeed crowned the champions.
In August that year, he was then sent on loan to Toulouse for the season, however, he endured a torrid year which became even worse when he was suspected of shooting a passer-by with an air soft gun, injuring him in the head. Edouard had his loan deal cancelled after scoring just one goal in 17 appearances. After initially being cleared from a teammates confession, it was then recanted and Edouard was then charged with a four month suspended prison sentence and a €6,000 fine for his involvement in the incident, as well as damages of €2,600 to the victim.
It was indeed a tough period for the youngster, however, that did not stop him aiming for the top. Edouard signed for Celtic in August 2017 on a season-long loan deal. He scored on his debut against Hamilton Academical, aiding his new team in a resounding 4-1 victory. His fantastic performances that season convinced the clubs hierarchy to sign him permanently after scoring 19 goals in the league and 11 goals overall.
His success at Celtic Park didn’t end there, he then scored 23 goals the following season as Celtic claimed an unprecedented domestic treble, winning the Scottish Premier League title, the Scottish League cup, and the Scottish Cup. His two goals against Hearts in the Scottish Cup final secured their extraordinary achievement of winning the treble two years in a role. The 2019/20 campaign was a relative success too, becoming the first player in the Scottish Premiership to score 20 goals or more since the 2016/17 campaign. Edouard has also remarkably scored 11 goals for France U21s, in just 6 games.
What’s Edouard’s Style of Play?
Edouard is an elegant, multi-functional player. The Frenchman oozes confidence, and quality when he steps on the pitch. Up-front maybe his natural position, but his contributions and influence in attack run deeper than that.
As well as his 22 Scottish Premier League goals last season, he also registered 7 assists, showcasing his creative spark and abilities in the final third. As well as a natural goalscorer, he can also act as the team’s main creative force from the front in order to create space and opportunities for his teammates. He loves to drop into the half-space to exchange passes before moving into spaces vacated by the defence. While its so effective and complimentary of Celtic’s attacking play, it is also bamboozling for opposing defenders, they are often left confused as to who to pick up.
His dribbling abilities emerge from his South American roots. He is rarely exuberant all the showboating type with it, but he exhibits an effective use of his control in tight spaces and a technique which few players in the Scottish division can match. It’s abilities such as this, and his fantastic movement, link-up play that makes him such a dangerous commodity within the final third. The Frenchman averaged 0.9 goals per 90 minutes, and 0.38 assists per 90. It’s no wonder why he is the Scottish Premiership’s most deadliest forward.
His goals and assist ratio per 90, reads at 1.28. Odsonne Edouard is a creative phenom, Celtic’s driving force spearheading almost every attacking scenario.
Edouard is also highly adaptable too. He has performed admirably and consistently despite the changes in philosophy from the patient possession based system under Brendan Rodgers, to the risk-taking approach under current manager Neil Lennon. It is a sign of his suitability to different systems and his versatility also. He’s got the pass and move intelligence to perform well in a possession-based system and the speed of thought, movement and clinical edge to also thrive in a pressing, and counter-attacking system. Which means he can fit in almost any of the top sides around Europe.
Is Edouard ready for the Big Time?
No disrespect to the Scottish Premiership, but Odsonne Edouard has already outgrown the whole division, into his fourth season at the club. The Frenchman is a remarkably talented prospect, a complete centre-forward boasting all the attributes needed to thrive at the top level.
However, that doesn’t mean joining the elite will easy. His next club will be a big test for him as he will likely join a club who doesn’t dominate their division like Celtic do season after season, though his mentality and character has come on leaps and bounds since his move to Celtic park and there is no reason why he can’t fit in at any of the top sides he’s attracting interest from.
He’ll also importantly harbour ambitions to become the France’s main goal threat in the future, though he faces some stiff competition from Olivier Giroud and and predecessor Moussa Dembele. While it may be a tough ask, if Edouard continues at the rates he is developing then, those supposed lofty ambitions won’t be far away from being fulfilled.
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