Just Fontaine has died at the age of 89 after a life well lived following a celebrated football career.
He set a World Cup record with 13 goals for France in the 1958 World Cup finals in Sweden, after he was added as a last-minute addition to the French team.
Fontaine, who was born in Morocco, was a little-known forward outside of the French league when he participated in the tournament. Despite this, he tormented opponents with his speed and closing touch – and even with the boots of others. He had to borrow cleats after damaging his own during exercise.
More about Just Fontaine: Born in the Atlas region of Marrakech to a Normandy father and a Spanish mother, he began his professional career with US Marocaine de Casablanca. Fontaine began his career in his home country with USM Casablanca in 1950. In 1953, he was signed by the French team OGC Nice, where he scored 44 goals in his first three seasons.
Fontaine replaced Raymond Kopa at Stade de Reims in 1956. He tallied 121 goals in six seasons with Reims. He scored 165 goals in 200 league matches and went on to capture two league titles with Reims in 1958 and 1960.
He was one of the greatest strikers in French football history and the only player in history to score 13 goals in a single World Cup competition.
Nonetheless, Fontaine is best known for his contributions to the French national squad. On his international début against Luxembourg on December 17, 1953, he scored a hat-trick. Fontaine became a legend during the 1958 World Cup, in which France placed third when he scored 13 goals in six games, a record for a single player in a single World Cup. He appeared in 21 international matches and tallied 30 goals.
His career highlights: Fontaine, who scored in every match, gave France an early lead with the tournament’s first goal. But, with the score at 1-1, France defender Robert Jonquet broke his knee. Amazingly, he continued to play, attempting to compete with Pele’s genius, but the French defence was significantly weakened.
- Germany striker Miroslav Klose, who competed in four World Cups, holds the mark for most goals scored in a World Cup career with 16. Fontaine only appeared in one World Cup, breaking Hungary striker Sndor Kocsis’s 1954 tournament mark of 11 goals.
- During his meteoric rise as a scorer, Fontaine scored 200 goals in 213 games. In 21 games for France, he tallied 30 goals.
- His career was dramatically cut short when he was only 28. The Frenchman – renowned for his lightning pace and ruthless finishing – suffered a horrendous leg fracture after a mistimed tackle in March 1960.
