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8 mars 2024
Maurice Revello Tournament top 100 players : 35th to 31st
On the occasion of its 50th edition, which will take place from 3 to 16 June 2024, the Maurice Revello Tournament is opening its history book. Since it was founded in 1967, the competition has seen many talented players. More than 2,000 have gone on to become senior internationals, and some of them have written football history. To celebrate its anniversary, the Tournament is updating its top 100, created in 2017. Until 29 March, our website will be displaying the updated rankings of the 100 greatest players to have taken part in the Tournament. And it continues today, with the rankings from 35th to 31st place.
35th : Luis Fernandez (France) - 1982
1982 will not go down in the annals of the French team at the Maurice Revello Tournament. The most successful nation in the competition completely missed out that year. Beaten by Czechoslovakia (5-1) and East Germany (4-2), and held to a 1-1 draw by Portugal, Les Bleuets finally put Hungary to the sword (6-0) but finished a poor 7th. Yet this team is not short of talent: Jean-Marc Ferreri, Bernard Casoni, Philippe Vercruysse and... Luis Fernandez. The midfielder was not yet one of the 'magic four' who won Euro 1984 with Les Bleus, but he already had all the makings of a great player, having already made a name for himself at Paris Saint-Germain. He won back-to-back French Cups in 1982 and 1983, followed by a league title in 1986, and was later named in the club's all-time best XI. Caped 60 times by the French national team, he won Euro 84 and took part in the superb 86 World Cup path, finishing 3rd. After his career, he became a successful coach, notably leading PSG to the Cup Winners' Cup in 1996.
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34th : Giovanni van Brockhorst (Netherlands) - 1996
Along with Roy Makaay, he is the other member of the Dutch team at the 1996 Maurice Revello Tournament to feature in this ranking. That year, however, the Dutch did not have the most successful tournament. With one draw and three defeats, they completely missed out on the tournament, finishing in 9th place overall. From this team, 8 players went on to become senior internationals, including Giovanni van Bronckhorst. The left-back was at Feyenoord Rotterdam at the time, where he started and finished his career in 2010. In between, he enjoyed successful spells at Glasgow Rangers, Arsenal and Barcelona. In all, he collected 16 trophies, including the Champions League in 2006 with the Catalan club. With 106 caps to his name, he is the 5th most capped player in the history of the Oranje, with whom he played in the 2010 World Cup Final.
33rd : William Gallas (France) - 1997
One year after van Bronckhorst, another defender shone at the Maurice Revello Tournament. As part of a France team brimming with talent, with 6 players in this top 100, William Gallas already possessed the skills he would display throughout his career. Winner of the 1997 edition with this golden generation, the centre-back is one of the architects of this uncontested success. After the tournament, Gallas joined Olympique de Marseille, where he confirmed his potential before moving to England. First at Chelsea, then at Arsenal and finally at Tottenham Spurs, the player trained in Caen made his mark at all three London clubs, notably the Blues, with whom he won 3 trophies, including the Premier League title in 2005. With Les Bleus, he made 84 appearances and took part in the final of the 2006 World Cup after a memorable run.
32nd : Vitor Baia (Portugal) - 1990
Portugal's 4th-place finish in the 1990 Maurice Revello Tournament was not their best performance in the competition, but it proved once again that they are always tough opponents. After two victories over Portugal (1-0) and the USSR (1-0), the Lusitanians lost to France (0-1) and then to Brazil in the match for 3rd place... because they were forced to forfeit the match after being sent off 4 times! The team included a goalkeeper who would go on to make Portuguese football history: Vitor Baia. The goalkeeper was already playing for FC Porto at the time, where he became a veritable legend. With 566 appearances to his name, he is now the 2nd most capped player in the club's history. With no fewer than 33 titles won during his career, he was the first most successful player in the history of football, overtaken a few years later by Daniel Alves, Andres Iniesta and Maxwell. With Porto and Barça, where he played for two seasons, he won 11 domestic titles and 3 European Cups, among others.
31st : Robert Pirès (France) - 1995
"I'm proud to have played in the Maurice Revello Tournament. [...] It's a great tournament. Personally, it helped me a lot in my progression and at the same time it was the start of my history with the French team". The memories of his participation in the 1995 edition of the Tournament are indelible for Robert Pirès, who was full of praise in an interview with us in 2015. Beaten runners-up by Brazil that year, Les Bleuets included future internationals Vikash Dhorasoo, Olivier Dacourt and Pirès. The attacking midfielder made his debut for FC Metz and joined Olympique de Marseille three years later. He became an established player in Marseille, before heading for England and Arsenal to be precise. In six seasons, he made his mark on the club's history by winning 4 trophies, including 2 Premier League titles and the Invincibles trophy. The story is just as beautiful with Les Bleus, where he was part of the generation that won the World Cup and then the European Championship in 1998 and 2000. He gave the assist to David Trezeguet, who scored the golden goal in the Euro 2000 final against Italy.
