Nîmes, 8th before the start of the 24th day, is traveling on the lawn of Caen, 15th, this Saturday February 12 (7 p.m.).
A big blow to Dijon to start (2-1). Then, a gunshot start against Valenciennes (two goals in a quarter of an hour, 2-1). A coup in the second period in Pau (Nîmes dominated and 0-0 at the break, Nîmes dominating and 3-0 at the final whistle). Then the stoppage against Dunkirk (0-1) after three meetings in nine days with a dozen players barely cured of Covid-19. And the overall feeling, for the new coach Nicolas Usaï, that his Crocos are playing in fits and starts. Half-time, as often since the start of the season.
“We have the raw material”
A month after his arrival, the time needed to get to know each other and assimilate new working methods, the coach believes that the time has come to play a full match. “That’s what I told them on Friday in my pre-training chat. We have to make sure find our reference match. I consider today that we have the raw material and the individual quality to be successful from the first to the last minute. For this, there are ingredients to put in the behaviors and intentions of the game”develops Nicolas Usaï.
The 18 players selected for the trip to Caen, tomorrow at 7:00 p.m. pic.twitter.com/jcV1tgkRTB
—? Nîmes Olympique (@nimesolympique) February 11, 2022
Proof that he wants more after three last half-hearted performances. Wanting to maintain, first and foremost, does not prevent having ambition. This week, the Crocos worked for. “Against Dunkirk, in the mood, the state of mind, we were there, but we were unable to unbalance the opposing block, which was very compact as often in L2. The average age of the team was 23-24 years old, we have lack of experience. In recent days, we have worked on variety in our game launches, and on the link between defense and midfield and midfield-attack. We did a lot of video, one edit a day, to make some adjustments”explains the technician.
Still no reference match this season
Before him, Pascal Plancque looked for it for a long time, this reference match on which to rely. He never found it. Difficult, indeed, to find one on the first 23 days of the championship. The two 2-1 successes against Dijon (2nd and 20th day) were rather successful, but NO got scared at the end of the game. In Auxerre (11th), it was pretty good in the game, but Nîmes found themselves trailing 2-0 (equalization at 2-2)… In Valenciennes, Pau (3-0 away) or even in Dunkirk (2-0), the Gardois had passed very close to the correctional in the first 45 minutes. On the contrary, in Paris, they had shone in the first act… To better die out in the second. The victory at Sochaux (1-0) was a hold-up. That against Quevilly (2-1) too.
The Normans beat Ajaccio and Toulouse
So, is it for today or tomorrow? One thing is certain, it will be necessary to be good to win in Caen, this Saturday. The Normans, terribly irregular, still pinned the third and the leader to their hunting board. “I saw their match against Ajaccio on January 24 (2-0). They provided a high quality service. warns Usai. And they also won in Toulouse (3-2). After a very difficult season, they had built a team cut out for the climb. We move with great suspicion.” But also, after the aftermath of Dunkirk, with the intention of achieving a bang. Or a masterstroke, as you wish.
