Football / Ligue 2. Record, strength, injuries: the latest news before Le Havre
The trip to Le Havre
It’s a new risky trip for FC Annecy, with Le Havre who have three wins in a row and allow the highest possession of the ball in the championship (59.27%). “It’s not difficult to get into it in terms of motivation, concentration and attention before these kinds of matches. It’s on the ground where it’s more complicated because we have to deal with heavy things, ”warns Annecy coach Laurent Guyot. They are making a very good start to the league, we feel that there is confidence, very high quality players, it’s not for nothing that some of them are on the shelves of the biggest clubs. They have a coach (Luka Elsner) who is very focused on the quality of the game, you can see it, you can feel it. It’s well thought out, it’s well thought out. We know it, we’re going to play to our strengths and we’ll see what happens in the end. “After leaving the red zone thanks to his victory against QRM (1-0), this trip should avoid any form of decompression before the international break. “It remains a name in French football, so we are in the game well before against this kind of team”, promises goalkeeper Florian Escales
Mendy too fair
Spared for fifteen days, the central defender Bissenty Mendy, who had served his suspension match against QRM (1-0 victory), is too fair to appear in the group. Arnold Temanfo is on the other hand very present. Despite the absences in the middle of Ahmed Kashi (suspended) and Alexandre Phliponeau (knee), Alexandre Fillon still does not fit into the group (choice). Striker Ibrahima Baldé, injured in the hamstrings since the 3e day against Laval (1-0 defeat), is back.
The group :
Stopovers, Callens – Lajugie, Mouanga, Jean, Bastian, Ruque, Goncalves – Pajot, Temanfo, El Jaouhari, Rocchi, Shamal, Testud, Billemaz – Bosetti, Sahi, Baldé.
Absent: Kashi (suspended), Mendy, Phliponeau, Farade (injured), Spano (recovery), Malbec (g), Fillon, Eckenfelder, Rolland (choice).
The hermetic record in sight
With four full games without conceding a goal, since Ruthénois Depres equalized in the 90th minute (2-2) on August 20, FCA and Escales are only five minutes away from Bordeaux’s season record and its goalkeeper Gaëtan Poussin (360 minutes against 365), during the first five days. “I don’t pay attention to that. When the game starts, I put the brain in the locker room and I’m focused on the present moment. Afterwards, in five minutes, things can happen”, smiles Escales, a great craftsman of this solidity. “We don’t really create chances so we don’t have much choice, develops Guyot. This is one of the reasons why I changed the system at the start of the season. I had the feeling that you had to have the humility to tell yourself that you had to be solid at this level to hope for anything. We had to take some assurances on that side, it works today, but it’s still fragile and we have to remain vigilant about these details. » Stopovers confirms: « We have to congratulate the whole team, it’s everyone’s job. But we have to remain lucid and keep a cool head because, in each match, there were situations where we could have conceded goals. But we have that little extra something right now. Which makes Annecy the 4th best defense in L2.
The midfield to rethink
With the injury of Phliponeau, hit in the cruciate ligament of the right knee and whose rest of the season is compromised, plus the suspension of Kashi for one more match, Guyot will have to rethink his midfield where only Pajot remains available. “He gradually imposed himself in this environment and a complementarity was created, grimaces Guyot. But we will do without. as we have done for several months in the event of absence, players have taken over and it has gone rather well. This is where you see the state of mind of a group. Spared on Wednesday and back in training on Thursday, Temanfo should be part of the trio, the last element remains to be found.
The lawn of the Sports Park
At this stage, FC Annecy have defined five points away and four at home. “You have to wonder why on the realization of the best away games. My colleague (Olivier Echouafni, coach of QRM) spoke about it, the first choice he said to me when I arrived at the stadium was “you are brave to play on this lawn”. Despite all the efforts that are made, by people who give the maximum, on a quality lawn that is more than average compared to what we see outside. It must be taken into account. But also on characteristics which make that outside on a more spaces too , concedes Guyot.
Update on the infirmary
Affected in the hamstrings shortly after his arrival in mid-August, Baldé is operational again. Mendy, who finished the match in Metz (0-0) gritting his teeth, remains uncertain and was spared this week. Spano (shoulder) has resumed collective training but it seems premature to see him appear in the group this week. Finally, Phliponeau (knee) will be done soon. “It pisses me off, he’s a colleague, a Marseillais, he grew as the matches went on. It really bothers me that he is not there, it pains me, ”breath Escales, whom he knew at OM. Farade (ankle) was effective on Wednesday.