Lucas Digne has been speaking to French magazine SoFoot at length, and whilst most of the chat was about the national team ahead of the World Cup, his Aston Villa career was of course touched upon.
SoFoot start the chat by explaining they had to travel to north London rather than Birmingham for the interview. Digne lives in the capital city, having to do regular commutes to facilitate his Aston Villa career.
That’s quite unusual, although not unheard of.
Towards the end of the interview, the choice to do an extended commute came up. SoFoot wanted to know why Digne would live so far away from the club he plays for.
The Aston Villa player explained it’s down to family reasons, and specially the education of his children.
French school essential for Digne family
Lucas Digne wants his children to be educated in French and couldn’t find an appropriate school in the Birmingham area.
“It’s a family decision. When I signed for Villa (in 2022), my son started school, but in Birmingham, there aren’t any French schools.
“For us, it was really important that our children could read and write in both French and English. In London, they have the opportunity to do both. They have two cultures, or even three, since my wife’s family is Algerian. They’re young, but you can tell they’re already open-minded.”
The French magazine then asked whether the defender has made a point of mastering the language in each country he’s played.
“I was speaking Italian after a month, and I think I’m fluent in Spanish. A young Brazilian, Alysson, just arrived. He speaks Portuguese, but with Spanish, I was able to help him settle in. It’s an extra skill for work, but also for everyday life, whether it’s for shopping, talking to people, or making yourself understood.”
Not the only Aston Villa player making the trip
Asked to describe his day, Lucas Digned mentione what sounds like an impossibly quick commute, before stating he’s not the only Aston Villa player on the long journey.
“I leave home between 7 and 7:30am., and I arrive at the training centre about an hour later. A little warm-up, a cold bath, and then I join the physios for massages before the group activation session. There are three or four of us who make this trip every day, and it’s far from insurmountable.
“Since I’m not the one driving, I can put on my recovery boots in the Viano (the big Mercedes van that dropped him off at his house a few minutes earlier). Then again, with three kids, between school, the older one’s football practice, and the younger one’s dance class, it can be a bit of a race against time. As Eden Hazard said in an interview: I sometimes feel like a taxi driver.”
