From a player who waits for a chance from the bench, getting a few minutes at the end, Andrija Bulatović has turned into the strength and support of the team.
And not just any team - but the leader of Ligue 1, the elite French division, one of the Top 5 strongest European championships.
It's not just any leadership position, jealously guarded by Lens' players - because 18 rounds have already passed, and European champion Paris Saint-Germain is watching them from behind, for the fourth week in a row.
The team from "Felix Bolero" is not stopping, they achieved their eighth consecutive victory, their tenth if the Cup (in which PSG is no longer included) is also counted - today they lost to Auxerre, 1:0 on home soil.
Bulatović played the full 90 minutes for the second consecutive match in the championship, the third this season in League 1, and once again showed that nothing in football is accidental.
Slowly but surely, the 19-year-old Montenegrin international is turning into a leader of the midfield - he is the one his teammates leave to take free kicks and set pieces; he is the one who is present in every part of the pitch, both in front of his own and the opponent's penalty area.
And it's just a question of when he'll hit the net - he had three shots on goal today.
Out of 33 passes, he successfully passed 27 balls to his teammates, and he also had 60 touches of the ball - among the players who had the most.
All in all - high marks in the French media.
The scorer was Wesley Said, who scored the only goal of the match, in the 60th minute, assisted by Melango Sara.
"Another very interesting game from Andrija Bulatović, 19 years old, after a good game in Toulouse two weeks ago," wrote the French "Footendetails" immediately after the match.
The unreal race with Paris Saint-Germain continues, and Lens and Bulatović face a great test next week - they are visiting Marseille, at the famous "Velodrome".
Bonus video:
