Jacques Leenaert
Jacques Leenaert (born January 21 or 22, 1921 in Roubaix , † March 18, 2004 ) was a French football player .
Career
The 178 centimeter tall striker Leenaert grew up in the northern French city of Roubaix, where he joined the youth department of the first division club Excelsior AC Roubaix at the age of nine . He made his professional debut on October 2, 1938, when he played for the first team of the EAC Roubaix in a 3-2 win against FC Sochaux in the first division. The then 17-year-old was not considered for any further games at a time when substitutions and substitutions were not yet possible until 1939 when official play was stopped due to the start of the Second World War . He was drafted into the military and sent to North Africa as a soldier in 1940. After he returned in January 1943, he was able to play for Excelsior again under amateur status, although the official game operations continued to be suspended. In 1944 he was again obliged to take part in the war and fought in Alsace against the German troops, where he participated, among other things, in the liberation of Colmar . He then took part in the further advance towards Germany and Austria before returning to Roubaix.
After the war he received a contract with Excelsiors successor club CO Roubaix-Tourcoing and stood for a time for the reserve team on the field before he achieved the breakthrough in the first division team at the beginning of the 1946/47 season. He scored ten times over the course of the season and thus helped his team take first place and thus become French champions of 1947. This success represented his first and only title win at national level. On September 21, 1947, he made particular attention when he scored all four goals for his team in a 4-4 draw against the Stade Rennes . By the end of the 1947/48 season, he scored 14 times, making it his most successful year in terms of his scoring qualities. He was then mostly called up in defensive midfield , which is why he was now hardly able to contribute his own goals. With the champion from 1947 he slipped into the lower middle of the table at that time and the return to the top never succeeded. In 1952, he ended his professional career at the age of 31 after 155 first division games with 29 goals. Leenaert was never granted a call to the French national A team , even if he played for his country's B team.
Individual evidence
- ^ Jacques Leenaert - Fiche de stats du joueur de football , pari-et-gagne.com
- ↑ HOMAGE TO JACQUES LEENAERT , cortfree.fr
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Leenaert, Jacques |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | French soccer player |
| DATE OF BIRTH | January 1921 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Roubaix , France |
| DATE OF DEATH | March 18, 2004 |