🇭🇹 Fafa Picault hopes to make a difference by representing Haiti
At age 32, the former U.S. international made his international debut with the country of his parents and grandfather in the Gold Cup.
It was no secret Fafa Picault was eligible for Haiti, but it took a long time for fans to finally see the Nashville SC winger put on the jersey and help the national team.
The timing was never right. Picault took a call-up for Haiti in 2014, but didn’t appear.
For a time, he was focused on the U.S. Born in New York and raised in South Florida, Picault played in friendly matches for the Stars and Stripes in both 2016 and 2018.
FIFA regulations still allowed him to play for Haiti, the team his grandfather represented and the home country of his parents, but he declined a call to join during World Cup qualification and another last year, saying he wanted to help his club team the Dynamo get out of a rut.
Now, the time is right for Picault.
He started and went 83 minutes for Les Grenadiers in a thrilling 2-1 win over Qatar in their Gold Cup opener.
Things are “flowing great” in Nashville, he said, and at age 32, he’s more concerned about leaving a legacy for others than earning any acclaim for himself.
“Mainly the situation in the country,” he told me when I asked why he’d accepted the call-up this time around. “It’s very difficult for a lot of people, and I wanted to come in and be a part of something to hopefully uplift the country and people there that may be down in morale.
“I think if we do something great here, not only it will do great for morale of the people back home, but also for the next generation of talented footballers that are in the country that may not have eyes on them, and fall through the cracks.”
While Picault long has been someone on the radar of the Haitian federation and its coaches, new manager Gabriel Calderón Pellegrino didn’t have much reason to think Picault would be part of his squad.
The Spain native took over on May 1 after the FHF declined to extend the contract of former manager Jean Jacques-Pierre after a perfect Concacaf Nations League run. With that fresh slate, though, Calderón sat down and began to analyze film of players eligible for Haiti but who had never played with the national team.
“I saw him on video, I didn’t know him personally, and honestly when I analyzed the tape, I really liked what I saw,” Calderon said. “He’s a player who gives us speed, individual talent, confidence in himself. He’s a guy with a lot of personality, and the truth is he’s helped us a lot.
“In the group, he integrated well. I’m in love with him,” he continued, chuckling. “Hopefully he continues at this level.”
Quick with a smile or joke and fluent in English, Spanish, French, Creole and Italian, it’s little surprise the polyglot Picault has fit in well in a Haitian team made up of players who grew up in different places around the world.
Picault emerged from the locker room after his debut sipping mate and gave interviews to the Haitian press, to Getting CONCACAFed and to TUDN, focusing on Picault ahead of Haiti’s match tonight with Mexico.
While the dancing and the smiles are fun, what Picault offers Haiti on the field goes beyond his personality.
“Experience: We need it on this team,” midfielder Steeven Saba said. “Whether you’re young, veteran, whatever everyone is here to contribute for this country.”
While it has been a long time coming, that’s certainly true for Picault.
When the national anthem played and the opening whistle blew, “it was an amazing feeling,” he said. “We know we have another tough task ahead but starting off with a victory was amazing.”
For now, Picault is committed and hoping to push Haiti to success in the Gold Cup.
Beyond that, Haiti’s men’s team hopes to match its women’s squad, currently preparing for the 2023 Women’s World Cup, and get back to the sport’s biggest stage.
Whether or not Picault will be part of that process is a bit up in the air and depends on him, Calderón and a host of other factors in a country stuck in perpetual transition.
“At the moment, it’s game-by-game. I’m dead tired right now!” he said after the opener. “But overall, it’s definitely to take the country as far as possible. We have big objectives and a lot of talented players, and I think we can do a lot of great things.”
For now, he’s here, trying to win the Gold Cup and give Haitians on the island and abroad something to celebrate.