Chelsea’s new £40million signing Tiemoue Bakayoko resprayed his pink Porsche black when he turned his career around
French ace's head was turned during early days in Monaco until his old coach set him right
Sponsored by
MIDFIELD powerhouse Tiemoue Bakayoko has become one of the biggest stars in world football after his £39.4million move to Chelsea.
But less than three years ago, his career was going very much in the opposite direction.
And it took a dressing down from a former coach about his outrageous pink Porsche to turn things around.
Bakayoko came through the academy at Rennes, making his debut in August 2013, and caught the eye with his power and presence.
He even played one game against his new team-mate N’Golo Kante, then of Caen.
Bakayoko did enough to impress Monaco who snapped him up for £7million.
But the transfer threatened to derail his career before it had properly started.
Bakayoko struggled on the pitch. He was substituted after just 32 minutes of his debut for Monaco in August 2014 and spent most of the season on the bench.
Chelsea transfer news
And off it, at the age of 19, Bakayoko became bewitched by the trappings of wealth and fame, in the playground of the world’s super-rich.
He owned a lavish villa on the outskirts of Nice, just down the French Riviera from Monaco.
Old friends from Rennes would travel to meet him and enjoy the party lifestyle that has been the trademark of this exclusive stretch of Mediterranean coast for decades.
And most notoriously of all, he drove around the Riviera in a Porsche Cayene painted a garish pink.
According to a report in respected French newspaper L’Equipe, Bakayoko only realised the error of his ways when one of his first coaches from Rennes, who had known him as a skinny teenager, came to visit.
The un-named coach was not impressed and even refused to ride alongside his former protege in the infamous pink Porsche, worth around £90,000.
Instead the coach spent a week putting the young Bakayoko back on track.
The incident had a profound impact on the starlet.
A devout Muslim, Bakayoko decided to rededicate himself to his profession.
And as a mark of his change of heart, he even had the Porsche resprayed in black.
Former Chelsea star Claude Makelele also played a key role in helping the young midfielder fulfil his potential.
Injuries didn’t help Bakayoko’s development, and he failed to force his way into the first team.
The arrival for Makelele as technical director in January 2016 was a turning point.
Makelele, now assistant manager at Swansea, told Goal.com how he made Bakayoko focus more consistently on the important things with daily pep talks.
Makelele said: “When I came [to Monaco] I saw him on the bench.
“He never played or was a substitute. One day I decided to talk to him, I come down and every day I spend it with him. He did a lot of wrong things.
“I talked with him, cleaned him the way he needed to be free in the head. To play as a midfielder you need to be 100 per cent concentrated.
“If it’s always a little problem here, little problem there, you can’t focus on your job you know?
“I talked a lot with him, like a full month with him every day, explaining things on the training ground.”
Bakayoko, who likes to wear the No14 shirt in homage to the area of Paris he grew up in, enjoyed his finest season last year, admits Makelele’s influence made a huge difference.
"He told me that I had a tendency to get distracted. It was true," .
"I took too many risks, but when you play in this position, you have to be calm and effective. He helped me channel myself."
It worked. Bakayoko enjoyed a breakthrough season as Monaco landed their first league title for 17 years, and reached the Champions League semi-finals.
The next stage now is a move to Makelele’s former club Chelsea.
The former Blue believes his one-time protégé can get even better in England
Makelele told Goal: "He’s not one to get scared. He makes the decisions all the time, sometimes it’s wrong, but this kind of player will make mistakes in order to get better.
"He has quality as a dribbler, passer, the timing of the pass. He’s good, very good.
“Now he needs one manager that will make him a big player."
