Thirty-eight, no club, no panic
Free agent since his last deal ran out. Islam Slimani is not treating that as an ending. The Algerian striker sat down with L’Equipe for an interview published a few hours ago and made his position plain: he is still playing.
“I am 38, I am still fit, and I am not in a rush. I am looking for a new challenge. I want to finish well, with something that gives me happiness and pleasure. Otherwise… I think I have had a satisfying career.”
No drama in the phrasing. Just a man who thinks the phone will ring.
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Algeria’s record scorer is still on the market
Slimani is not an ordinary free agent. He is the leading scorer in Algeria’s history, a mark no forward from the national side has got near.
The club career backs it up. Sporting CP, where he first broke through. Leicester in the Premier League after that. Then AS Monaco and Olympique Lyonnais, two Ligue 1 spells that made his name familiar to French crowds. A penalty-box striker who fights for everything, the type who can make a centre-back’s afternoon miserable for 90 minutes.
That profile is getting rarer. Somebody will be tempted.
He is selling more than goals
The Algerian does not pitch himself purely as a finisher. There is a second argument he keeps coming back to.
“I am a rational person. In my head, I know I can still play. I do not want to stop, I have the ability to carry on. I have done this my whole life and I feel it is not over yet. I can also bring experience and pass things on to the younger players.”
A young dressing room. A club climbing. A move abroad. All of it is on the table, and Slimani is waiting for the one that makes him want to lace them up again.
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