The French footballer Just Fontaine, who has died aged 89, was one of the major surprises of the 1958 World Cup finals in Sweden. Arriving there with the France squad as a reserve striker with few expectations of being called to the colours, he ended up with the remarkable total of 13 goals – a record that will surely never be surpassed.
Fontaine’s partnership in those finals with the dazzling Raymond Kopa, the one who really pulled the strings, was jaw-dropping. “Those French forwards are like greased lightning,” remarked Tommy Docherty, then a Scotland wing-half. Sturdily built, Fontaine had pace, together with a flair for knowing when and where the ball was coming to him; especially from Kopa, who operated as a deep-lying centre-forward.
