It’s easy to forget Marc Guéhi is just 21. Be it wearing the armband, marshalling the backline or giving diplomatic answers in composed interviews, the Crystal Palace defender belies his young age through his conduct.
Now, Guéhi is even doing press conferences, speaking to the media before Palace’s FA Cup semi-final with Chelsea.
One man who doesn’t overlook the centre-back’s age is Guéhi himself. Throughout his answers to the media, the 21-year-old referenced how much he’s learning from senior players at the club.
“We’ve got quite a lot of experience,” he said. “James McArthur and James Tomkins and Jordan Ayew and Wilfried Zaha, that’s just a few. We’ve got quite a lot of experienced players. A few have come in and it’s quite a young team but we do have experience in this team.”
Guéhi has formed a commendable partnership with fellow centre-back Joachim Andersen, with the pair providing a solid base time and again at the back.
Discussing their relationship, Guéhi said: “He’s a good friend of mine. We spend a lot of time off the pitch and have built a really good understanding and that comes from hard work on the training field along with all the defenders. I’m a young one so look up to him for what I can learn – along with James Tomkins and Martin Kelly for advice.”
The attitude that makes Guéhi an old head on young shoulders has seen the centre-back handed the captain’s armband repeatedly this season. He may well lead the team out under the arch at Wembley on Sunday.
“I’m just humbled by the situation,” he said, “having been given the armband a few times this season. That’s testament to the manager, to all the players giving me the confidence to do so. I’m learning from so many senior players here.”
