Football – Ligue 2. Invincibility, marathon, suspension: the latest news before Pau
Pau, memory of a nightmare
In the first leg, lost 2-0 at the Parc des Sports in Annecy, the promoted Haut-Savoyard had certainly provided his worst performance since his return to Ligue 2. “This match, like the defeat against Bastia (2-0), served us because we were in an interpretation of what we wanted to do which was not good. It made it possible to sort things out. This is what is fantastic with this group because it has this ability to exchange, to discuss, ”recalls the Annecy coach Laurent Guyot. This Saturday, it is revenge on themselves that the Annecyans will seek: “it had been a non-match on our part, on which the staff had pressed a lot to highlight what should not be done. They had caused us a lot of problems in the first leg and we would have to find the answers on this return match, ”extends vice-captain Jonathan Goncalves.
The marathon of five games in 14 days
Pau on January 28, Caen on the 31st, Saint-Etienne on February 4, Paris FC in the Coupe de France on the 8th and finally Laval on the 11th. This is the tunnel of matches offered to FC Annecy, with only one match at home, against Caen. “Sometimes, we can have the fault of projecting ourselves too much and thinking too much about the management of the workforce, but we do not know the risks that there can be in each match between injuries and suspensions”, remarks Guyot. Thus, recovery will be an important focus for the next two weeks in Annecy. “We worked more upstream because those who are going to play a lot mainly do recovery. The performance of the one who plays every three days is played more in his bed to sleep than on the ground to work on anything ”, smiles the Haute-Savoie technician.
The 10-game unbeaten streak
FC Annecy has not lost since October 22 and a trip to Bordeaux (1-0) which climbs its record to 10 games without defeat (three wins, three draws in L2; four qualifications in the Coupe de France). “Honestly, I feel a little too much euphoria around the team today but I’m not complaining because it’s better than having pessimistic people complaining about the results. We’re on the right track, we’re progressing, we’re making good progress, but be careful not to take us for others. We must not forget why we have good results and why we are quite boring to play, ”warns Guyot. With two points on average taken per game since November, the FCA has been making great strides for three months. “We know that any series has an end, continues Goncalves. The goal is to postpone this moment as late as possible and to stay on our values. »
The suspension of Bissenty Mendy
The sanction fell on Thursday. Expelled after the meeting during an altercation with Belfort defender Lucas Cuenin, the boss of the Annecy defense Bissenty Mendy given an eight-game suspension. “This expulsion is problematic because with five games in two weeks we will have to relaunch a player (Kévin Mouanga) for one, two, three games when he has not played for two and a half months”, Guyot breathed before the sanction does not fall. “I’m not going to add to it either, Biss has brought us so much since I’ve been here, I’ve made him my captain, but there’s a duty to set an example and to exercise restraint. I’m really not happy. He knows it. He is a very important player in the team and that handicaps us, that is obvious. The FCA will have to do without it until the beginning of March.
Goncalves and his new role as a defensive midfielder
again as a defensive midfielder Used in Belfort in the Coupe de France, taking over from Ahmed Kashi in the Coupe de France, Jonathan Goncalves, who has just celebrated his 34th birthday, found this season a position in which he had not played since his first early years as seniors. “I appreciate this position, it’s a return to my first love if I can say so. But I don’t focus on this position, I rather try to work on my versatility as much as possible. Even if it can be paradoxical at 34, ”he smiles.
The transfer window
A start, Alexandre Fillon at Le Puy (N). An arrival, Samuel Ntamack from Romorantin (N2). For the moment, the Annecy winter transfer window is calm. “January 26, there are a few days left. It’s my role to stay open if an opportunity arises, but today the players give us the feeling that we have to trust them and that we can trust them. I like this. But football goes fast, ”recalls Guyot. But barring an unexpected opportunity or a major injury, the FCA should no longer move. To date, in the direction of departures, no proposal has reached the Annecy offices.
