“It’s starting to get painful”
In search of a new breath after having hired Stéphane Moulin during the summer after a catastrophic season, the Stade Malherbe de Caen is in correct passage times to hope to see the playoffs at the end of the season. Presentation of the opponent of USL Dunkirk for this meeting of the thirteenth day of Ligue 2.
The dynamic
A great start, a big slack and then an awakening on Monday, this is in a way what can resume the first quarter of the season of the Stade Malherbe de Caen version Stéphane Moulin. Passed very close to the correctional last season, with a relegation and a barrage for the maintenance for a long time tutored, the Caennais are doing much better so far under the orders of the former coach of Angers. With three wins out of the first four games, the Caen seemed to assert themselves as a strong contender for the immediate rise, but a sell-off of the five-game streak without a win ultimately sent the Normans back on the ropes. First to have brought down Toulouse (3-2), at the end of the tenth day, Malherbe seemed to have woken up. However, depending on the injuries of varying lengths and suspensions, the Normans relapsed immediately, losing against Valenciennes before being caught by Le Havre. With no less than ten absent to go to the North, will Caen have the weapons to come and win at Tribut?
The player to watch
Among the few operational executives, Alexandre Mendy will be the figurehead of the attacking game of Stade Malherbe. Author of a fiery start to the season with five goals in four games, Mendy suffered a slight decline following a red card received directly against Ajaccio. Nevertheless, the striker raised his head in the derby against Le Havre, scoring a but and delivering an assist after a month without statistics. Attention danger ?
The statement
“We will try to play a good game and bring something back against a team that has just won three games in a row. They are on a good dynamic, have found their style, have all their players. We will still have to find the right formula there, that’s how it is. It’s very complicated because there is no continuity. We have bad news every week and it starts to get painful. “
Stéphane Moulin (Caen coach)
The transfer window
They arrived : Ali Abdi (defender, Paris FC); Franklin Wadja (middle, Lorient); Nuno Da Costa (forward, Nottingham Forest, on loan); Mehdi Chahiri (striker, Strasbourg, ready); Ibrahim Cissé (defender, Dunkirk).
Loan return: Timo Stavitski (forward, Maastricht); Evens Joseph (forward, Boulogne).
They left : Alexis Beka Beka (middle, Lokomotiv Moscow); Adama Mbengue (defender, Châteauroux); Azzeddine Toufiqui (middle, Emmen); Steeve Yago (defender, Aris Limassol); Jessy Pi (middle, Dijon); Kevin Mbala (striker, Bastia-Borgo, loan); Yacine Bammou (forward, Ümraniyespor); Marvin Golitin (goalkeeper, Bobigny); Younn Zahary (defender, Cholet); Herman Moussaki (striker, Boulogne); Nicholas Gioacchini (striker, Montpellier, loan); Anthony Weber (defender, without club); Santi Ngom (striker, without club); Brice Tutu (striker, without club); Ayoub Jabbari (striker, without club).
End of loans: Aliou Traoré (midfielder, Manchester United); Garissone Innocent (guardian, Paris SG).
The number
4 – SM Caen has never lost in Ligue 2 against Dunkirk since the establishment of the single group in 1993/94, obtaining 2 draws in the North and winning twice on the lawn of the USLD.
The Caen group
Riou, Clementia (l.) – Armougom, Molchan, Oniangué, Rivierez, Abdi, Fouda – Hervieu, Lepenant, Gonçalves – Da Costa, Zady Sery, Mendy, Hountondji, Shamal, Chahiri, Inoussa