What went wrong once morest Reims?
Our first period. We weren’t up to par. We were taken by a good team with good dynamics, we didn’t offer anything interesting, very little movement, vertical play, we took a long time to get the ball out. We lacked rhythm, there was technical waste. The team quickly split in two. This made the match difficult. We cannot be satisfied with these first 45 minutes.
The second period, we changed the animation with a little more density inside and more verticality. I had decided to bring Ney and the two forwards together. It seemed better. Even at 10 once morest 11, we had situations. The players have made a lot of effort. In the 96th minute, incredibly, we had no control. There are 20 seconds left, we take a ball in the depth when we should have had much more control with the experience we have on the ground.
Two defeats (Rennes 0-1, Lens 1-3), a draw (Reims 1-1) in 2023, a very insufficient level of play: are you worried?
Worried no, disappointed yes. Disappointed on an accounting level. We are not going to take refuge behind the post-World Cup calendar. It’s been a few weeks that our performances have not been at the same level as in the first part of the season. We have to work, we have to find solutions, and reconnect with individual performances of the highest level.
This team seems lost tactically. And there are insufficient individual benefits. Is there a crisis of confidence?
A crisis of confidence, I don’t think so. Perhaps a crisis of sufficiency, all the demands we had… It went wrong for different reasons. It’s hard to restart. On being able to play as a team when you have the ball and without the ball. We mightn’t find that. I have high level players who cannot accept being at this level since the beginning of 2023.
Will this lead you to make decisions in terms of management?
There will be decisions to be made. This week, the players have worked well, it was not seen on the ground. We cannot be satisfied with that. There will be decisions to recreate competition. We fell into a comfort zone. You will have to shake off.
Are you counting more than ever on the transfer window?
There are 48 hours left. The club is working on the arrival of at least one player. There are significant constraints with financial fair play. We want reinforcements. Will it happen? I do not know. We cannot take refuge behind the absence of a player. We have quality players in the squad. Everyone needs to get back to their level very quickly.
