Jean-Pierre Papin, football’s first £10 million pound player.
Jean-Pierre Papin - The short story of his record-breaking career
In July 1992 Papin moved from Marseille to AC Milan in what was a world-record transfer fee at the time of £10.8 million, in the process he became the first-ever player to be bought for 10+ million.
The School of Football sums up the career of Jean-Pierre Papin.
Born in Boulogne-sur-Mer, in 1963 Papin would survive a car crash at the age of 12, breaking his leg in the incident. He was told that he may never play again yet he overcame this great adversity to have a 17-year career which would seem him score nearly 350 goals and become the only ever player to win the Ballon d’Or whilst playing for a French side.
Papin’s early league career
He began his professional career in the 1984/85 season for Ligue 2 side, Valenciennes. He made his debut at 21 and in one season the forward scored 16 goals in 35 games. Belgium side Club Brugge signed Papin in 1985 and in his only year in Belgium he scored 32 goals in 43 games helping them win the 1986 Belgium Cup.
Marseille signed Papin in 1986 and with him as captain they won 4 straight league titles between 1989-1992, a league and cup double in 1989 and they reached the 1991 European Cup eventually losing to Red Star Belgrade on penalties. He scored 181 goals in 6 years which makes him Marseille’s all-time record goalscorer.
"Jean-Pierre Papin is doubtless one of the most gifted strikers I've ever seen"
Ballon d’Or and Milan move
Papin also experienced individual success at Marseille, winning the Ballon d’Or and Onze d’Or in 1991 and winning the Ligue 1 golden boot 5 times before he signed for AC Milan in 1992.
The man nicknamed ‘Papinades’, after his trademark volleys, struggled to establish himself at Milan and he stayed for just 2 years scoring 31 goals. He did, however, win 2 Serie A titles and the Champions League in 1994 and he was also part of the Milan side that lost to Marseille in the 1993 Champions League Final.
In 1994 Papin signed for Bayern Munich, he scored 6 goals for the club, winning the UEFA Cup in 1996 before he returned to France to join Bordeaux. Between 1996-1998 Papin played 72 games and scored 31 goals for Bordeaux. At the back end of his career, he spent time at Guingamp and Saint-Pierroise before he retired in 2001.
At International level, Papin won 54 caps for France and he scored 30 goals which puts him 7th on their all-time top-scorers list.
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