PARIS (AP) — One striker is finally turning the corner after five years of frustrating inconsistency in the French league.
The other is soon to leave Ligue 1 for a bigger club after five years of clockwork consistency.
Jonathan David and Amine Gouiri face off Sunday with their teams — third-place Lille and second-place Marseille — chasing one of the two remaining automatic spots for next season’s Champions League.
Only two points separate the teams but neither can afford to lose, because Monaco, Lyon, Nice and Strasbourg are right behind them on the home stretch.
Paris Saint-Germain has already won the French league, which has three automatic Champions League places. The team in fourth enters qualifying.
With only two rounds remaining after this weekend, Sunday's duel between the in-form strikers could have a big impact on which team qualifies directly.
David has netted 16 goals for Lille this season, putting him third in the scoring charts, while Gouri is brimming with confidence after a superb hat-trick last weekend. It included an overhead kick that is destined to be a goal-of-the-season contender.
Careers intertwined
David and Gouiri are both 25, and both started making their mark in Ligue 1 five years ago.
Since then, Gouiri has scored 54 league goals compared with 87 for David, a New York-born Canadian who joined Lille from Belgian club Gent for about 30 million euros ($34 million).
Steady stream of goals
A quick and powerful striker with an assured first touch allied to good positional sense, David began scoring immediately after joining Lille.
He helped Lille win the league title in his first season when the northern club beat Paris Saint-Germain in a huge upset.
The Canada striker has not stopped scoring since and netted seven goals in this season's Champions League.
He has 109 goals in 229 games overall for Lille and is reportedly attracting the interest of Barcelona as an eventual replacement for veteran Robert Lewandowski.
Injury and inconsistency
Gouiri's career began with his local club Lyon and saw him compared with Karim Benzema — the former Real Madrid star and 2022 Ballon d'Or winner — because of his skill, vision and scoring ability. He was so highly-rated that then-coach Bruno Genesio called him into the first team squad at 16.
But two years later, he injured his knee in training and was sidelined for seven months. He barely played the following season and was sold to Nice in the summer of 2020 — the same time David joined Lille — for seven million euros ($8 million).
There were flashes of brilliance at Nice, where Gouiri showcased his ability. But he left two years later to join Rennes for 28 million euros ($32 million).
It was a similar story there: a strong first season followed by a weaker second one.
“With such technical ability, such a good first touch, you would expect him to regularly make a difference,” former Rennes coach Julien Stéphan told sports daily L'Équipe. “Amine has always had the talent, but has not made the most of it.”
Gouiri lost his starting place this season and Marseille moved late in the winter transfer window to sign him for 22 million euros ($25 million).
The move has proved a resounding success with seven goals and several assists in 11 games.
After scoring twice and being involved in the other three in a 5-1 win over Saint-Etienne, Marseille coach Roberto De Zerbi challenged him to become one of the best forwards in Europe.
De Zerbi told Gouiri to become clinical and stay closer to the penalty area. He helped him by moving him off the flank and into a more central role, albeit with license to roam.
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Jerome Pugmire, The Associated Press
