On February 2nd, Liverpool reached an agreement with Stade Rennais for Jérémy Jacquet to arrive at Anfield in the summer.
Chelsea were concretely pursuing the centre-back in the winter market, before the Reds agreed terms.
On winter deadline day, Sport Witness covered French claims ob Liverpool overtaking the Blues in the last two days of the window. The Merseyside club pushed hard, and their project convinced the 20-year-old to pick them over Chelsea.
PSG snubbed incoming Liverpool player
Chelsea weren’t the only one regretting missing out on Jacquet as Paris Saint-Germain would also be in that list. That’s at least what Le Parisien are reporting, and in this case, PSG decided not to sign him.
Stade Rennais initially signed the France U21 international from Racing Club de Joinville in 2019 for their academy. He spent five years with the youth team before moving to the first team in 2022.
Last summer, he returned to Stade Rennais after a season-long loan at Clermont Foot 63 and cemented his place at the Ligue 1 side. His performances caught the attention of several clubs and Arne Slot’s side won the battle in the end.
Le Parisien credit their scouting team for spotting him at a young age, when he was at Paris based side, RC Joinville.
Why Ligue 1 giants hesitated
PSG could have at least stopped his move to Stade Rennais had they decided to sign him before that. The newspaper claims the Paris club had then scouted the incoming player but decided against signing him.
Le Parisien relay a comment from an unnamed former member of PSG’s recruitment team.
‘PSG hesitated between him and Sékou Doucouré, whose profile was more in line with the club’s development philosophy. Jacquet had talent, but he seemed less technically prepared,’ a former PSG official said.
Doucouré spent six years at PSG’s academy but failed to make it to the first team. He moved to FC Nantes in 2024. Luis Enrique’s side could regret how things have gone with these two players.
Former Stade Rennais scout Khaled Gaarba, who is now at Lille, explains how Jacquet overcame challenges to secure a move.
“When I first saw him in Joinville, there weren’t many clubs interested in him. I asked to see his father, Dominique, who ran the club’s refreshment stand,” Gaarba explained.
“After maturing even further, he won everyone over. He injured his shoulder before he even got to touch the ball. Jérémy was gutted, but we immediately reassured him by explaining that if he was there, it was because we believed in him.”
“He came back for a training camp at the end of the season, this time at 100% fitness, and after maturing even further, that’s when he won everyone over.”
Le Parisien say the ‘rest is history’ as Jacquet ‘found himself on the verge of the Premier League after a sensational year.’
The defender is now working on regaining full fitness, after suffering an injury setback last weekend.