The celebration of Sofiane Alakouch, who came to celebrate his first goal in the Parisian jersey in the arms of coach Stéphane Gilli and the bench, seems revealing of the state of mind that reigns in this group. Despite the poor results, the locker room did not crack. He also continues to unite around Stéphane Gilli, reinforced during the international break by his management.
Despite everything, Paris FC had no room for error on the Dunkirk pitch, bottom of L2. But even if everything was not perfect, the Parisians, still deprived of many players – Kolodziejczak had to remain in the stands and was added to the long list of injured, Gory and Lopez remained on the bench – , still showed that individually and collectively, they played in a different league than the promoted northerner. In Dunkirk, the decision of the Turkish owners and their referent, the former scorer Demba Ba, to replace Mathieu Chabert, the coach of the miracle of the rise, with the Portuguese Luis Castro, is for the moment a bitter failure (4th defeat of following).
Thanks to this 3rd success this season, Paris FC moves up to 16th place, one point behind Bordeaux before a new tough match against Troyes (17th) next Saturday at Charléty (free entry).
Ilan Kebbal behind the three goals
For his return to Dunkirk where he revealed himself in L2 in 2020-2021, Ilan Kebbal entertained and left his mark on the match. The playmaker, for whom the PFC made a big financial effort to transfer him from Reims (L1) in July, undoubtedly produced his most accomplished performance since the start of the season. He is responsible for all three goals. First on a free kick taken by the head of Adama Camara then by Lamine Diaby Fadiga (0-1, 11th). Kebbal then played the decisive role for Sofiane Alakouch (0-2, 62nd) and Pierre-Yves Hamel (1-3, 77th).
Diaby Fadiga and Hamel, who share playing time, have also gained confidence and boosted their stats (respectively 2nd and 4th goals of the season). They both even found the post (31st for Diaby Fadiga and 85th for Hamel).
In addition to its offensive efficiency, Paris FC delivered a solid defensive performance. Obed Nkambadio (20 years old), preferred for three matches to Ivan Filipovic in goals, continues to assert himself. If he can do nothing about the goal of Armand Gnanduillet (72nd), the goalkeeper called by Thierry Henry during the last gathering of the French junior team, made decisive saves as against Gnanduillet (56th) or on a strike from Orelien (68th) and was impeccable on his aerial exits.
The only downside during this evening of almost rebirth, the injury exit of Lohann Doucet, hit in the shoulder in a shock in the first period (40th). The first diagnosis raises fears of a fracture of the clavicle. A hard blow because the midfielder on loan from Nantes (L1), who exudes a lot of power and impact, has been one of the satisfactions of the PFC since the start of the season.
“This victory is a small step,” underlines Stéphane Gilli. I told the players that I didn’t want to lose against Dunkirk and Troyes. We have to do small series in the short term, there’s no point in planning too much. During the match, we were solid and quite good offensively. Even though we still had to change the system, the players adapted well. I’m happy for them. They work well and listen. We talk to them a lot. There are some really good guys in this group. Ilan (Kebbal), I also spoke to him a lot this week. He was very good and played as expected of him. »
Match sheet
DUNKERQUE – PARIS FC: 1-3 (0-1).
Referee: Mr. Leleu.
Buts. Dunkerque : Gnanduillet (72e) ; Paris FC : Diaby Fadiga (11e), Alakouch (62e)., Hamel (77e).
Warnings. Dunkirk: Boissier (51st), Keita (84th).
Paris FC: Nkambadio – Alakouch, Korea, Mbow, Gaudin – Mandouki (cap.), Camara, Doucet (Demoncy, 40th) – Kebbal (Toure, 89th), Diaby-Fadiga (Hamel, 59th), Lukembila. Entr. : Gilli.
