Tylel Tati, The 17 Year Old Left-Footed Centre Back To Watch At Nantes | OneFootball

On 17 August 2025, a sold-out Beaujoire watched champions Paris Saint-Germain roll in for the opening day. Tylel Tati, 17 years old and making his first professional start, walked to the centre circle, won his first duel, and settled the whole place down. Nantes lost 1-0, yet the debut was the story. He looked calm on the ball, quick across the turf, and tidy in contact. Luis Castro called it a very good game, and Ouest-France described the display as successful and promising for the future. It was a debut that announced a player, not just a prospect.

That is the point of this profile. He is left-footed, strong, fast and raw, enthusiastic and hungry to learn, and he has the temperament for a big stage. From the moment he faced PSG, he has felt less like a project and more like a first-team defender.

A Teenager Who Did Not Blink or Shrink

Picture the scene. First day of the league season at the Beaujoire, champions in town, cameras tight on a kid in the number 78 shirt. Most teenagers hide in those moments; Tylel Tati did the opposite. He defended with patience, read the ball early, and kept his clearances simple. There was a late lapse, the sort of thing that happens to veterans as well as rookies, but the wider point stood: the stage did not swallow him up.

That first impression matters because it tells you about temperament. Plenty of young defenders have the physique; far fewer have the poise. Tylel Tati showed he has both, and he showed he enjoys the scrap too.

Origin story: from Roissy to La Jonelière

Tylel Tati was born in 2008 in Champigny-sur-Marne and first learned the game at US Roissy-en-Brie, a club deeply tied to his family. His father, Sambou “Bijou” Tati, has long served as club president and even coached a young Paul Pogba during his final year there. From Roissy, Tylel moved on to INF Clairefontaine, the most famous finishing school in French football, before arriving at Nantes in 2023.

By the end of the 2024–25 season he was already playing for the reserves, and just a few months later he was stepping into the first-team group for pre-season under Luis Castro. Then came the leap. On 17 August 2025, still only 17 years old, he started against champions Paris Saint-Germain in the opening round of Ligue 1. Nantes lost 1–0, but the story was his performance. Castro described it as “a terrific game,” while Ouest-France called it “successful” and “promising for the future.”

Alongside the footballing narrative sits a personal one. Tylel Tati carries Congolese roots from his father’s side and Senegalese heritage from his mother’s, a background that mirrors the multicultural mix that has shaped so many French talents before him. It is a story of steady progression and patient steps, but also of a teenager who seized his chance the moment it arrived.

Career and international snapshots

French youth

What He Is Right Now

He is a left-footed centre back around 1.92m, he covers ground quickly and wins his share of contact. He can also cover left back and defensive midfield, which shows in his ability to defend the channel and step into midfield when needed. You notice three things immediately. First, his speed over the first ten yards: he gets to the ball side of his marker quicker than you expect, which kills angles for through passes. Second, his strength in the stand-up duel: shoulder to shoulder, he is hard to shift and he times his poke tackles well. Third, his body shape when receiving the ball is open enough to play out to the full-back or into midfield and conservative enough to avoid silly turnovers. Against Strasbourg in his second senior match, he looked comfortable, carried through the left half space, and picked his moments to step in.

There are rough edges, which is part of the appeal. His forward pass percentage is low so far, a sign of a risk-averse approach rather than a lack of technique. His aerial timing can improve, especially when backpedalling. His progressive carries are limited; he prefers the straight-line stride into space rather than the feint past a striker. These are coachable items. The foundations – reading, speed, and bravery – are in place.

What Tylel Tati said after his debut

Style guide, the tools and the habits

Footedness and anglesBecause he is left-footed, Nantes can build on both sides without flipping a right-footer over. This is important for pressing resistance because full backs and sixes receive the ball at more advantageous body angles. You see Tylel Tati hit the simple out ball to the left back or clip a firm pass into the nearest midfielder. The range will grow; the basics are already reliable.

Speed and recoveryNantes have been able to squeeze five or ten yards higher with him because he can cover grass in behind. When the ball goes over his shoulder, he opens up, runs in long strides, and clears his lines the first time. That does not sound glamorous; it wins points.

Strength and duelsHe does not go to ground often. He prefers to stand his man up, use his hips, and press the ball at the last moment. For a teenager, his core strength is notable; forwards bounce off him when they try to pin and roll. In set pieces he is already a useful blocker and first contact option.

Raw, enthusiastic, coachableThere is a spark to his game, a desire to engage rather than hide. The enthusiasm needs channelling at times, early jumps in the line can leave space, and the odd late switch-off has crept in near the end of halves. The positive spin is that he is very coachable; the mistakes are about experience rather than attitude.

Strengths and growth areas

Strengths

To develop

What the numbers say

Sofascore snapshot, 2025–26 so farAppearances 4, starts 4, minutes 360, clean sheets 1.

Defending per gameClearances 3.8, tackles 1.0, interceptions 0.8, dribbled past 0.0, errors leading to shot 0, errors leading to goal 0.Total duels won 2.0 per game at 47%, ground duels won 2.0 per game at 62%, aerial duels won 0.0 per game at 0%.

Passing and build upTouches 55.5, pass accuracy 87% overall, 94% in own half, 53% in opposition half.Long balls 1.5 per game at 40%, chipped passes 0.8 at 25%.Key passes 0.3, expected assists 0.01.Possession lost 6.3 per game.

Attacking and disciplineGoals 0, shots 0, big chances missed 0.Fouls 1.3, fouled 0.3, cards 0.

What it tells us

Match log, Ligue 1 2025–26

Why Nantes Suits Him, For Now

The Castro blueprint values compactness, clear roles, and aggressive line stepping. That is a good environment for a young centre back because the distances are short and the instructions are simple. With an experienced partner on his inside shoulder, he can focus on first contacts and cover. The full-back on his side benefits from a left-footer who can play first time into the channel, which keeps transitions clean.

Nantes as a club also understands how to showcase young defenders. Recent sales have put value on the position, and the fanbase will accept a learning curve if they can see the intent and the work rate, both of which Tylel Tati provides in spades.

What The Scouts Will See

If you were to sit in on a scouting meeting, the first notes on Tylel Tati would be obvious. He was born in January 2008, stands 1.92 meters tall, is left-footed, competitive in duels, and remains calm under pressure. The debut against Paris Saint-Germain would be underlined too, not just because of the opposition but because of the way he handled it without fuss. Scouts like players who look comfortable in uncomfortable situations, and Tylel Tati ticked that box straight away.

They would also flag the balance in his profile. Quick enough to defend higher up, strong enough to anchor in a deeper block, and level-headed whichever way you use him. What he does with the ball will be the next step. At the moment he keeps it simple and safe, which is fine at his age, but stretching his passing into midfield pockets or opening the pitch with a diagonal will take his game up a level. The technique is there, the decision-making is sound; it is just about expanding the repertoire.

Every report would end with the same list of development points: sharpen the aerial timing, improve the scans before receiving, add the odd disguised pass through the first line, and carry the ball forward once or twice each half. Just as important, though, would be the line on character. He plays with enthusiasm, he looks confident without being cocky, and by all accounts he responds well to coaching. For a 17 year old centre back, that combination is exactly what recruiters want to see.

Tylel Tati Comparisons

When you look for players who resemble Tylel Tati, the mind goes to a certain type of defender. Tall, left-footed, quick enough to cover ground, and comfortable defending space as much as contact. The names that come up most often are Alessandro Bastoni, Benoît Badiashile, Jarrad Branthwaite and Evan Ndicka.

Bastoni offers the clearest mirror in terms of anticipation and his ease at stepping into midfield or defending wide. Tati is not yet as progressive on the ball, but the way he times his interventions and carries the ball a few yards to break pressure has a similar feel. Badiashile brings another layer to the picture: the long levers, the physical frame, and the ability to win first contact. Tati still needs to grow into the aerial side of the role, yet his speed across the turf and the way he uses his body in duels suggest the same profile of defender.

Branthwaite at Everton shows what can happen when that physicality is paired with a big stride into space. He covers wide channels without fuss, something Tati has already shown in his second game against Strasbourg. Add Ndicka to the mix, with his versatility as a left-sided centre-back or occasional full-back, and you get a sense of the different ways coaches might use Tati in years to come.

Taken together, these players sketch a blueprint. Bastoni’s anticipation, Badiashile’s frame, Branthwaite’s stride and Ndicka’s flexibility all describe elements of Tati’s game. He is not the finished product and he will need to sharpen the aerial dominance and expand his passing, but the resemblance to this group of tall, left-footed centre backs is enough to make you pause. If he continues on the same track, he could follow a very similar path.

What’s Next for Tylel Tati?

Talk of price tags is inevitable, but the only thing that really matters right now is playing time for Tylel Tati. At 17, every minute on the pitch is worth more than any speculative valuation. Nantes know what they have: a 1.92 metre left-footer who wins his duels and has already shown he can handle senior football. Interest will come; that is the market, but the healthiest outcome for everyone is simple: he keeps playing, he keeps learning, the team gains from it, and if an offer lands in the future, the club will be ready to decide from a position of strength.

In the short term, the focus should be on minutes and small steps, building partnerships with senior defenders and adding one or two safer progressive passes to his game. In the medium term, he has the physical tools to become more of a threat in the opposition box at set pieces, an area where his leap and frame could make a real difference. Longer term, the aim is to refine the aerial game and develop the diagonal pass that turns him from a promising prospect into a reliable starter at European competion level.

The good news is that none of this requires a reinvention. It is about repetition, steady coaching, and experience. The raw qualities are already there, the attitude is spot on, and the enthusiasm shines through every time he plays.