Resurgent Carrasso shores up Toulouse
Monday, February 2, 2009
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After experiencing the harsher side of football at Olympique de Marseille, Cédric Carrasso has bounced back with Toulouse FC this term, prompting coach Alain Casanova to label him "one of France's three best keepers".
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After experiencing the harsher side of football at Olympique de Marseille, Cédric Carrasso has bounced back in style with Toulouse FC this season. The talented goalkeeper has been an essential element in a promising season for the club, with his performance in Saturday's goalless draw at Stade Rennais FC another in a string of impressive displays.
Telling intervention
Alain Casanova's side travelled to Brittany hoping to break into the top three and, although victory proved elusive, that they came away with anything at all was down the man between the sticks. Carrasso's very first contribution after five minutes was an excellent save to keep a Mickaël Pagis effort away from the bottom-left corner, and with an hour gone he made another decisive intervention, this time to deny Jimmy Briand in a one-on-one. As a result, Toulouse are yet to concede in 2009.
Nightmarish season
"We owe him a lot in terms of the good season we're having," explained Casanova, whose team now lie sixth. "Many sides would have wanted him as a goalkeeper." That was not quite so obvious when Carrasso signed in the summer, however, having just seen the back of a nightmarish season with Marseille. A first-team regular for the Mediterranean club, the 27-year-old sustained an Achilles tendon rupture during training in August 2007 and was absent for the next six months. By the time he returned, promising youngster Steve Mandanda - now a France international - had made the goalkeeping jersey his own.
Third-best defence
"I left because I wanted to be a starter and felt like I had the ability to be one," he said. "Toulouse was a good choice because they had a new coach and some new players. I wanted to start something new too." With everything to prove again, Carrasso has not let his new employers down, having played every minute of Toulouse's 22 matches this term . His side now boast the third-best defence in Ligue 1, with 15 goals conceded. "For me, Carrasso is one of France's three best goalkeepers," added Casanova. "He's on the same level as [Hugo] Lloris and Mandanda. He's an important player off the pitch, who experienced problems at Marseille and has managed to bounce back."