'We’re like a family here': Habib Diarra delights in good times at Sunderland.
Vous or Tu? It speaks volumes about Habib Diarra that his elation at being promoted from the youth ranks at Strasbourg to the first team was accompanied by anxiety over the two French 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 formal “vous”. Cue wholesale laughter from the veterans who instructed him not to be so silly; he was one of them now.
“Once I received the first call with the coach, I reflected 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 ambition 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 the club's training ground detailing why he ignored overtures from, among others, Milan, Atlético Madrid, Eintracht Frankfurt, Aston Villa and Leeds. His natural politeness endures but it is apparent that the 22-year-old Senegal international and doubt are practically unacquainted. Diarra carries himself with the self-assurance befitting a player who led Strasbourg at the age of 20 and, only last month, returned from Morocco clutching an Africa Cup of Nations winners’ medal.
A Clear Project
Now that the groin issue that kept him out for much of the opening months of the league campaign healed, Diarra is on a quest to demonstrate precisely why he agreed to become Sunderland’s most expensive acquisition last summer. Pundits in France and Senegal questioned Diarra’s unfashionable choice but he knew all about Régis Le Bris’s standing as a talented youth coach.
“It came as no shock by the coach’s ability because I already knew what he’s able to achieve,” says Diarra. “Facing his teams I understood he was very good, very strong in terms of strategy. He’s someone I know is aiding my development. And although our primary aim is reaching 40 points, European qualification is certainly a achievable goal this season.”
A Unified Environment
Externally, the cold winter gusts and heavy downpour makes the region look as bleak as it is often depicted. Internally, things are much more welcoming. The atmosphere is free of the type of tension found in certain clubs where office workers are kept apart from Premier League squads. Diarra describes the environment as “really natural” and commends Le Bris’s role in its creation.
“The coach always says to us that we’re like a family here and we all support each other,” he says. “Each of us takes pride of each other.”
Freedom Within a Framework
If the structure, rigor and sheer hard yards underpinning Sunderland’s out-of-possession shape are a testament to the head coach’s attention to minutiae, Le Bris also likes his players to think for themselves. He offers his engine room players full freedom to be creative and interchange positions.
“Our manager establishes his tactics out within a structure but we have freedom to play within it,” says Diarra, who favors playing as a all-action No 8. “Out on the pitch that feels good. That autonomy is so important. Granit, our skipper, helps us a lot. He’s a really big player and a superb role model.”
Path and Settlement
Diarra is using a French interpreter but his English has progressed to the point where he can understand most questions. He is now focusing on acquiring the vocabulary to also answer them, which would be his third language. He is fluent in Wolof, the language he spoke growing up in his hometown near the Senegalese capital.
His early maturity helped him combat the frustration of needing an operation followed by four months out of action last autumn. “Being injured so soon after arriving here was disheartening, 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 emotional matchup awaits the former Les Bleus under-21 midfielder. “I loved playing for France but my inner feeling prevailed,” says Diarra. “There’s no regrets. I was born in Senegal; it fills me with pride to play for them.”
Similar emotions apply to Sunderland. “I’ve adapted very well,” he says. “I am really comfortable here.”