Alphonse Areola

Paris Saint-Germain

Early life and career

Alphonse Francis Areola born on 27 February 1993 in Paris, France, to Cleto and Heidi, who immigrated to France from the Philippines in the late 1980s. He began playing football at the age of six for Entente Sportive des Petits Anges and spent seven years at his local club before signing for Ligue 1 side Paris Saint-Germain (PSG). When Areola was 13, and upon the advice of coaches in Paris, he enrolled at the INF Clairefontaine football centre to further his development. He returned to PSG in 2009 and signed his first professional contract with the Parisians in July 2009, putting pen to paper on a three-year deal. On 18 May 2013, having progressed through the club's academy, Areola made his senior debut for PSG, replacing first-choice goalkeeper Salvatore Sirigu in the 48th minute of a 3–1 home win over Brest. PSG had been crowned Ligue 1 champions prior to the match and their opponents were already relegated. He made his first start for the club the following weekend in a 3–1 win over Lorient, playing 61 minutes in what was the final match of the season before being substituted for fourth-choice keeper Ronan Le Crom, who was sent off later in the match for a foul on Julien Quercia.

2013–16: Loans to Lens, Bastia and Villarreal

On 23 July 2013 he was loaned to Ligue 2 side Lens, who were managed by former PSG manager Antoine Kombouaré, for the 2013–14 Ligue 1 season. Areola immediately displaced Rudy…

Areola has played for France at all youth levels.

Youth

Areola represented France at every youth level from U16 to U21 between 2008 and 2014. He was the hero for France in the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup Final. Having ended goalless after extra-time, the match went to a penalty shoot out where Areola saved spot-kicks from Uruguay's Emiliano Velázquez and Giorgian De Arrascaeta to lead his nation to their first ever triumph in the tournament. He had previously featured for France at the 2010 UEFA European Under-17 Championship and the 2012 UEFA European Under-19 Championship's, and subsequently at the 2015 UEFA European Under-21 Championship.

Senior

On 1 October 2015, Areola received his first call-up to the senior team by manager Didier Deschamps for friendlies against Armenia and Denmark as part of the French team's build-up to hosting UEFA Euro 2016. He failed to make the tournament squad, but would be called up on three occasions for friendlies and World Cup qualifiers in September through to November 2016, although he was forced to withdraw from the latter squad after spraining his ankle. On 17 May 2018, he was named in Deschamps' 23-man squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. There he served as the third goalkeeper behind Hugo Lloris and Steve Mandanda as France went on to lift the title. In doing so, he became the first player since Argentina's Héctor Zelada in 1986 to lift the World Cup trophy despite being uncapped for his country at the time.…

Club

As of match played 5 April 2026

International

As of match played 25 September 2022

Paris Saint-Germain

Ligue 1: 2012–13, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2019–20 Coupe de France: 2016–17, 2017–18; runner-up: 2018–19 Coupe de la Ligue: 2016–17, 2017–18 Trophée des Champions: 2016, 2017, 2019 Bastia

Coupe de la Ligue runner-up: 2014–15 Real Madrid

La Liga: 2019–20 Supercopa de España: 2020 West Ham United

UEFA Europa Conference League: 2022–23 France U20

FIFA U-20 World Cup: 2013 France

FIFA World Cup: 2018; runner-up: 2022 Individual

UEFA European Under-19 Championship Team of the Tournament: 2012 Ligue 2 Goalkeeper of the Year: 2013–14 Ligue 2 Team of the Season: 2013–14 Eurosport Revelation of the Year: 2014 UEFA Champions League Breakthrough XI: 2016 Premier League Save of the Month: October 2023, January 2026 Fulham Player of the Season: 2020–21 UEFA Europa Conference League Team of the Season: 2022–23 Orders

Knight of the Legion of Honour: 2018