There was a time when the greatest French talent in recent years was not Kylian Mbappé but a generation mate of his. Jean-Kévin Augustin (June 16, 1997, Paris) was the pretty boy of the PSG academy. The precocious talent that knocked down all the doors of the Parisian quarry. Mbappé stood out at Monaco and Augustin at his hometown team. The two were the leaders of the France U-19 that in 2016 found no rival in Germany to win the European championship. Jean-Kévin Augustin was the top scorer of the tournament (6 goals in the final phase) and designated the best player in the European Championship, as in his day were Torres, Aquilani, Deulofeu, Mitrovic, Asensio or Mount. Mbappé, his best squire. Also superior in talent for his age, he was limited to appearing in the photo with a generation on which great hopes were placed in the French country: Augustin, Mbappe, Harit, Tousart, Marcus Thuram…
Augustin that 2015 and 2016 overshadowed Mbappé. It was the future of the rooster team. He debuted in 2015 in the Coupe de France with the PSG first team coached by Laurent Blanc. In the 2016 Youth League final, they were defeated by Chelsea although they were one of the team leaders. He scored a goal against Solari’s Real Madrid in the semifinals to eliminate the white team. He shared a dressing room with Nkunku, Edouard, Ikoné and Zagadou… other stars from the PSG academy who had to pack their bags.
That U-19 European Championship in 2016 elevated him and after winning the European Championship he made the leap to the U-21 in a forward that he shared with Ousmane Dembélé and Lemar. Leaving Sebastian Haller on the bench, when he looked like a Frenchman before becoming an absolute international with the Ivory Coast. Little by little, Augustin was getting more minutes in the PSG first team. It was at the end of the 2016-2017 season when things started to go wrong for the striker. Mbappé was already consolidated in Monaco’s lead while he had to sweat to scratch minutes in the Parisian attack. Despite this, Augustin went as the leader of the French team to the 2017 U-20 World Cup, but France fell in the round of 16 at the hands of Italy. Meanwhile, his alter ego Mbappé skipped his time at the Under-21s and made his debut directly in the French team. Suddenly when Augustin was a few steps above Mbappé, Bondy’s man firmly put the first steps of his brilliant career.
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Mbappé wins the World Cup and Augustin fades
Mbappé rejected Real Madrid to be the king in Paris, while Augustin’s career lurched. In 2017 he was sold to Leipzig for €16M and that’s where his debacle began. Loans to Monaco and Leeds, with hardly any continuity. After 20 goals in 67 games with the German club in 2020, he ends up free at Nantes. He didn’t shine either: 11 games in two seasons.
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At 25 years old, Basel is the last loophole to hold on to. Augustin, whose market value is a measly 1.5 euros for the €160M in which Transfermarkt appreciate Mbappe, He has been welcomed with open arms by coach Alex Frei, legendary striker for Basel and the Swiss national team. One last chance to be the footballer who once shone alongside Mbappé.
