The miracle did not occur for the men of Jocelyn Gourvennec in Brest. When he replaced Turkish striker Burak Yilmaz with Hatem Ben Arfa a quarter of an hour from the end of the match, the Lille coach was no doubt hoping that his new recruit was the X factor allowing the Mastiffs to reverse the score. 265 days after his last match with Bordeaux, the attacking midfielder was not far from a winning return to Ligue 1 lawns. Just before added time, he skilfully cut off a cross from the penalty spot but his attempt stumbles on a Marco Bizot of the big nights.
The Dutch goalkeeper will have been the man of this match largely dominated by the defending champions of France but who came up against an iron Brest defense to finally bow 2 goals to 0. It must be said that it was a bad start for the Northerners who conceded the opener in the very first minutes when Tiago Djalo’s poor clearance turned into an own goal. The right-back is the first to give up his place at half-time.
Subsequently, the Lille get several opportunities through Burak Yilmaz and their strongman this season, Jonathan David, who are disgusted in turn by Marco Bizot. In the dying seconds of added time, the Bretons made the break thanks to a penalty following a foul by Celik that Steve Mounié was responsible for transforming. In the standings, Lille is provisionally eighth, four small points behind its opponent of the day, twelfth in Ligue 1.
A Ben Arfa still in good shape
If this defeat is not good news for the defending champions, the entry of Ben Arfa may be one. Despite a relatively short playing time, the French international had time to show interesting activity in the offensive sector. “I never thought my career was going to end, impossible! “During the press conference which followed his presentation at the Luchin estate (North) on Wednesday, he was very clear: he never thought of retiring after the expiration of his contract with the Girondins. from Bordeaux last summer. It is in this sense that the 34-year-old has tried, since July 1, 2022, to maintain a certain physical form. Shadow work that allowed him to once again gain the confidence of Olivier Létang, the president of Losc, whom he had already known at Stade Rennais during the 2018-2019 season.
“I know myself well. During my career, I have already had quite a few periods when I was not playing. I worked very well, insisted the new Dogues player on Wednesday. I knew which areas I needed to emphasize to stay competitive. I tried to keep the rhythm of a club, with the structures and training with the ball. I had a precise cycle to arrive fresh at a club. I feel very good. Afterwards, the coach and the medical staff will determine all that. On the program for the past few months, Ben Arfa has regularly taken part in seven-against-seven oppositions in the Paris suburbs and maintained his cardio during numerous outings in the Bois de Boulogne.
He resumed collective training the day after his arrival and his debut in his seventh French club only three days later makes it possible to envisage an express integration of the new number 11 in the Lille workforce. Next match on February 6 against … Paris Saint-Germain.
