The Top 10 – Panini France FOOT 2011-2012

During the 2011/12 Ligue 1 season, Boly emerged as a promising talent while playing for Auxerre. He showcased his potential as a physicallyu imposing defender, playing 33 Ligue 1 games.

Boly is a towering defender who relies on his strength, height, and athleticism, making him a formidable presence in aerial duels and a reliable defender in one-on-one situations. He possesses excellent timing and positioning, allowing him to make crucial interceptions and tackles to thwart opposition attacks.

After Auxerre, Boly went to play in Portugal for big teams such as Braga and Porto. He came into his best form for Wolves in the EPL. He solidified himself as a reliable defender, spending 4 seasons in the top flight with Wolves. He is still in the Premier League playing for Nottingham Forest.

An interesting rookie sticker to get the ball rolling.

During the 2011/12 Ligue 1 season, Wass showcased his potential as a dynamic midfielder while playing for Evian. He was on loan from Benfica and emerged as a key player for the French side, signing on permanently the following season.

Wass is capable of playing in multiple positions across the midfield and defense. He possesses excellent passing range and vision, allowing him to effectively retain possession for his team. Furthermore, Wass is known for his tireless work rate and defensive contribution. He is willing to track back and help out defensively, making tackles, interceptions, and providing cover for his teammates.

Currently, Wass is playing for his boyhood club Brondby. Over his career he has played for some big teams in Spain: Celta Vigo, Valencia and Atletico Madrid. He has totalled 8 season in the top flight of Spain!

Not bad as all! Throw in 44 caps for Denmark and this is an interesting rookie sticker!

During the 2011/12 season, Veretout began to showcase his potential as a promising midfielder while playing for Nantes. He emerged as a key player helping Nantes secure promotion to the Ligue 1.

Veretout is know for his composure on the ball, intelligent movement, and ability to dictate the tempo of the game. He possesses excellent passing ability, capable of delivering accurate short and long-range passes. Additionally, he has an eye for goal, often finding the scoresheet from midfield. Overall, he is a solid and reliable central midfielder.

He has an impressive list of teams he’s played for including: Aston Villa, Fiorentina, AS Roma, Saint-Etienne and Marseille. I would say his best football came at AS Roma, where over three seasons, he played 121 matches scoring 22. That’s not to say his career is finished!

He is 31 at the time of writing, and is a reliable midfielder for Marseille in the French top flight. He still has many years to further his impressive career thus far. An over-looked rookie sticker.

During the 2011/12 Ligue 1 season, Hazard was on fire! He won the player of the year, scoring 20 goals and assisting 15. Thats right, 35 goal involvements!

Hazard’s playing style is characterised by his agility, close ball control, and ability to effortlessly glide past defenders. He possesses exceptional dribbling skills, often leaving opponents in his wake with his quick turns, feints, and bursts of acceleration. Furthermore, Hazard is known for his vision and creativity, evident with his 15 assists. He has a keen eye for goal himself, with a precise shot and the ability to score from various positions on the field.

Hazard has featured a few times on my lists so I won’t bother going into too much detail. I will just end with, what a sticker and what a season!

Bakambu is a powerful striker know for his his speed and agility, making him a constant threat to opposition defences. He possesses excellent dribbling skills, allowing him to beat defenders in one-on-one situations and create goal-scoring opportunities for himself. Once in position, he is an accomplished finisher, often punishing the opposition.

During the 2011/12 Ligue 1 season, Bakambu began to establish himself as a promising talent while playing for Sochaux. He showcased his potential as a dynamic forward, catching the eye with his impressive performances and contributions to the team. In 2014 he made the decision to play for Bursaspor in Turkey. He scored 21 goals in 40 games, promoting Villarreal to sign him the following season.

At Villarreal, I think, Bakambu played his best football. In 3 seasons and 105 games, he scored 48 goals. In 2018 he made the move to China, spending 4 seasons there, and I think, hasn’t been the same player since. He has had stints Marseille, Olympiacos, Galatasaray and now Betis. He managed 24 goals between Marseille, Olympiacos and Galatasaray, with 18 of those at Olympiacos.

At 33, he is now at Real Betis. Who knows, maybe he will find his goal scoring touch again. But I think this is a case of taking the money for the sake of his career. Nonetheless, a really cool rookie sticker!

During the 2011/12 Ligue 1 season, Giroud had an incredible year for Montpellier. He emerged as the league’s joint top scorer with 21 goals, leading Montpellier to an unexpected league title triumph. Additionally, he racked up 9 assists while leading the line!

Giroud’s playing style is characterised by his strength, positioning, and ability to hold up the ball. He excels as a traditional number 9, using his physical presence to outmuscle defenders and create space for himself and his teammates. He has a great deft touch, often playing one touch football with teammates and involving others in the attack with his intelligent lay-offs and flick-ons. Additionally, Giroud is known for his aerial prowess, often winning headers inside the box and scoring goals with his head. He has a natural instinct for timing his runs and positioning himself in goal-scoring positions, making him a constant threat in the penalty area.

The following season he signed with Arsenal where he scored over 100 goals. He has gone on to win the World Cup with France and multiple club titles with Arsenal, Chelsea and AC Milan. A really cool sticker and a legendary season to match it.

It’s not often we see two rookie stickers on the one sticker, and here is a really nice one!

Valere Germain is a footballer known for his intelligence, positioning, and goal-scoring ability. During the 2011/12 Ligue 2 season, Germain emerged as a promising talent while playing for AS Monaco. He showcased his ability to find the back, scoring 8 goals as a young forward.

Germain has clever movement off the ball, allowing him to exploit spaces in the opposition’s defence and create scoring opportunities for himself. He possesses a natural instinct for goal-scoring and known for his work ethic and willingness to contribute defensively.

Germain spent 11 seasons in the French top flight for AS Monaco, Nice, Marseille and Montpellier. He has been an extremely consistent player a rookie I will personally be looking for!

Nampalys Mendy is known for his tenacity, tactical intelligence, and ability be a midfield enforcer. During the 2011/12 season, Mendy began to establish himself as a reliable midfielder while playing for AS Monaco in the Ligue 2. He demonstrated his ability to break up opposition attacks with well-timed tackles and interceptions.

His impressive performances saw him signed by Nice in 2013 and then signed by Leicester in 2016 as a replacement for N’Golo Kante. He wasn’t quite Kante, but he was a good servant for the English side, spending 7 seasons and often spending time with the physio.

Now, at 31, he is back in the French Ligue 1 for Lens.

This is a really cool double rookie sticker! And if you didn’t notice, there is Ludovic Giuly on the same sticker!

During the 2011/12 Ligue 2 season, Kondogbia began to establish himself as a promising talent while playing for Lens. He showcased his potential as a dominant presence in midfield, catching the eye with his powerful performances and contributions to the team.

Kondogbia’s playing style is characterised by his athleticism, tenacity, and ability to cover ground effectively. He excels as a defensive midfielder, using his physical strength and tackling ability to break up opposition attacks and protect the defence. Additionally, Kondogbia is known for his composure on the ball and ability to distribute play from deep. He possesses excellent passing range, capable of launching counterattacks with accurate long balls or starting build-up play from the back with short, precise passes.

He also posseses a monster of a left foot, capable of scoring from range. I can speak to this first hand as an Arsenal fan, where with his left foot he booted us out of the Champions League!

He has a very impressive list of clubs he has played for. Lens, Sevilla, AS Monaco, Inter Milan, Valencia, Atletico Madrid and now Marseille. A really top rookie sticker.

During the 2011/12 Ligue 1 season, Lacazette began to showcase his potential as a top player while playing for Lyon. It was his breakout season, as he played 29 matches in the league. He emerged as one of the brightest talents in French football, catching the eye with his impressive performances and contributions to the team.

Lacazette’s playing style is characterised by his intelligent movement, clinical finishing, and ability to link up play with his teammates. He excels as a center-forward, using his pace and agility to exploit spaces in the opposition’s defenxe and create goal-scoring opportunities for himself and others. Lacazette possesses excellent technical ability, with a precise shot and the ability to score goals with both feet and his head. He has a natural instinct for finding himself in goal-scoring positions and capitalizing on chances with his accurate strikes.

He has had a very strong career thus far, scoring 129 goals in his first stint at Lyon, before signing for Arsenal, where he scored 71 goals. He is currently back at Lyon and has racked up an incredible 50 goals in 70 games, as of the time of writing.

At the age of 32, Laca has a lot more to give and I expect this to be a really top rookie sticker, especially for Lyon fans!

Wissam Ben Yedder is the best Rookie Sticker in Panini FOOT 2011/12

During the 2011/12 Ligue 1 season, Ben Yedder began to establish himself as a promising talent while playing for Toulouse. He has gone on to be a prolific goal scorer everywhere he has been!

Ben Yedder is a slippery striker known for his agility, quickness, and clinical finishing. He excels as a forward, using his movement off the ball to create space and opportunities in the opposition’s defence. He is excellent on both feet, making in very difficult for defenders to shield his away from his scoring foot.

Ben Yedder possesses excellent technical ability, with a precise shot and the ability to score goals with both feet and his head. He has a natural instinct for finding himself in goal-scoring positions and capitalizing on chances with his accurate strikes.

Since breaking into first team football, Ben Yedder has only failed to register double figures in one season, where he scored 9 in 25 for Sevilla. He consistently bags goals for fun, and for Toulouse, Sevilla and AS Monaco, he has scored 279 goals in 552 appearances!

At 33 and still at Monaco, he doesn’t look like slowing down, scoring 13 goals thus far in the 2023/24 season, with 3 matches to go! I think this is a really slept on rookie sticker. This guy is a top player and where ever he goes, goals follow!

Now this is the first time I have made a little section like this in my articles but Nene needed a mention!

The supremely technically gifted forward had an absolute blinder of a season, helping PSG finish second. He was joint top scorer with Giroud, scoring 21 times and assisted 11 times. In terms of his career, this was his best individual season! Nene is am extremely talented forward who can play all across the front line, and best deployed as a 10. He is considered a free-kick specialist, having a magical left foot!

In almost every other set, he would have made the top 10, but in this case there were just too many rookies to fit him in.

I would say, he is one of the best Brazilian’s ever to not get a cap with the National Team.