Formal or informal? It speaks volumes about Habib Diarra that his delight at being promoted from the youth ranks at Strasbourg to the first team was accompanied by anxiety over the two distinct words for “you.”
Would addressing new, older teammates by using “tu” be regarded as disrespectful? Ultimately, the young midfielder played safe and selected the more polite “vous”. This prompted widespread amusement from the older players who told him not to be so ridiculous; he was one of them now.
“After I had the first call with the coach, I sat down and said to my parents: ‘Sunderland’s where I want to be; that’s where I want to play.’ The Premier League was always a goal of mine and the coach outlined for me a well-defined and appealing project.”
Almost five years later, Diarra is settled in an office at Sunderland’s Academy of Light explaining why he turned down offers from, among others, several top European clubs. His innate courtesy remains but it is clear that the 22-year-old Senegal international and uncertainty are virtual strangers. Diarra conducts himself with the self-assurance befitting a player who captained Strasbourg at the tender age of twenty and, only last month, returned from Morocco holding an AFCON championship trophy.
A Defined Vision
With the groin injury that kept him out for much of the first half of the league campaign healed, Diarra is on a quest to show exactly why he agreed to become Sunderland’s most expensive acquisition last summer. Pundits in France and Senegal queried Diarra’s surprising decision but he knew all about Régis Le Bris’s reputation as a gifted youth coach.
“I haven’t been surprised by the coach’s capabilities because I already knew what he’s capable of,” says Diarra. “Facing his teams I realised he was very good, very strong in terms of strategy. He’s someone I know is helping my game progress. And although our first objective is reaching 40 points, a place in Europe is certainly a realistic target this season.”
A Unified Environment
Outside, the chilly February wind and driving rain makes Wearside look as grim as it is often depicted. Inside, things are much more welcoming. The environment is free of the type of strain found in certain clubs where office workers are kept apart from first-team players. Diarra portrays the environment as “really natural” and commends Le Bris’s role in its formation.
“Our manager repeatedly states to us that we’re like a family here and we all support each other,” he says. “We’re all proud of each other.”
Liberty and Structure
If the structure, rigor and immense effort supporting Sunderland’s defensive organization are a testament to the head coach’s meticulous eye for detail, Le Bris also likes his players to use their initiative. He offers his midfielders full freedom to be creative and interchange positions.
“The coach sets his tactics out within a structure but we have license to play within it,” says Diarra, who prefers to be deployed as a box-to-box No 8. “Out on the pitch that is empowering. That freedom is so important. Our captain, Granit, helps us a lot. He’s a really big player and a superb role model.”
Journey and Adaptation
Diarra is using a French interpreter but his English has progressed to the point where he can grasp most questions. He is now concentrating on acquiring the vocabulary to also answer them, which would be his third tongue. He is proficient in Wolof, the language he spoke in his youth in Guédiawaye near the Senegalese capital.
His precocious maturity helped him deal with the frustration of needing groin surgery followed by four months out of action last autumn. “Being injured so soon after arriving here was frustrating, for sure,” he says. “But it was up to me to handle the situation.”
Diarra is now anticipating playing in this summer’s World Cup. Given Senegal have been drawn in the same group as France, a poignant reunion awaits the former Les Bleus under-21 midfielder. “I enjoyed representing for France but my inner feeling prevailed,” says Diarra. “I have no remorse. I was born in Senegal; it fills me with pride to play for them.”
Comparable feelings apply to Sunderland. “I’ve adapted very well,” he says. “I feel really comfortable here.”
