Lens-Nantes: ohé ohé abandoned captain – CULTURE SANG & GOLD

In the eye of the storm, Lensois and Nantais sail with a vision to find a new course. Let’s prepare this poster between RC Lens and FC Nantes, with the participation of Frédéric Happe from Agence France-Presse, Grand Ouest sports coordinator, who comes to offer us a detailed analysis of the Canaries and their start on the season.

Bad start boat captains

The ship from the port city, which has disappeared as a symbol of the FC Nantes logo since 2019, increasingly resembles the Raft of the Medusa, which is still alive in troubled waters. It was because we had to get over the first summer surf « the summer market [qui] very calm, as well as buying Abline, with the strength of circumstances as Nantes suffered as many collapsed in TV rights and were unable to sign the four or five players that were they are ready to part with them to sell. » As well as the problems with changing the squad, it seems that there are no captains or leaders in all areas of the club anymore, as our expert of the day investigates.

First, at his head, Waldemar Kita looks straight out of the turf with the management of the club that could seem to come from a distant galaxy. And although he has some qualities of Admiral Ackbar, his skills can match those of Captain Couard of the Costa Concordia by abandoning ship, although that is necessary. “Since Kombouaré’s return to the bench, Kita senior has stepped back from the day-to-day management of the club – which was a necessary condition for Kombouaré to accept -, leaving his son Frank even more to act as an intermediary medium. […] Anyway, there aren’t many people left to defend him in Nantes and have been for some time now. The sea snake of selling the club can only re-emerge from time to time, but as he seems to have an extremely high opinion of the club’s value, this is unlikely to materialize in the near future. coming months, for lack of an interested buyer. »

On the field, there are rarely male leaders and the captain’s armband is passed from arm to arm without finding the rightful one. “This team has no leader. The arm band changed several times (Chirivella, Lafont, Castelleto, back to Chirivella). Perhaps the only “leader”, at least the only one who really tries to shake his partners, is Nicolas Pallois, who is at least very controversial. But at 37, he is no longer a starter and the years are starting to take their toll. »

Tactically, FC Nantes is supposed to be organized around playmaker The same observation, with a change at the position and the latest choice, Tino Kadewere, who does not seem to have the profile of his position . “Since the beginning of the season, Nantes have played in 4-2-3-1, regardless of the players in the line-up. It is a system that nevertheless seems to have a playmaker supporting the center forward, but Nantes don’t really have a player with this profile. Kadeware is used in “10” without the technical features or the view of the game necessary for that. »

Antoine Kombouaré, who leads the team, is also a target of criticism. The results have been more than average since mid-September, with a result of 3 points taken out of a possible 21. These complaints against coach Kanak find out where they came from “The complete ineffectiveness of his attempts to revive players or rob his team, and his communication which often seems very out of touch with the impression his team left on the field . »

Go north!

So what? Nothing is going well and FC Nantes is just a ghost ship, in danger of relegation? Obviously, the truth is more complicated. The Nantes coach prefers to see the glass half full. “Statistically, Kombouaré is responsible for this, carefully choosing the figures he cites. And Nantes never seem to be far from their opponents. » The most recent example, the match against OM was very close, with a turning point: “Nantes still had clear chances against Marseille […] Kadewere, despite his goal, also missed two big chances, including a ball that was sent far into the stand face to face with Rulli at 1-2.this is still the final score.

So, Lensois, let’s be careful about water still. Certainly, yellow and green fail in many areas of play. “The most obvious thing is undoubtedly the offensive animation which is very poor. It is difficult to define the project when the team has the ball. Defensively it is also very difficult to find positive elements. There are far too many individual errors, due to lapses in concentration, technical errors or lack of communication. » Add to this the mind of a fresh water sailor and “The lack of realism in both surfaces. Another major weakness of Nantes is its lack of “mind” in the face of adversity. Nantes have not won one of the last 19 games in which they have found themselves behind.Frédéric Happe explains to us again.

However, Nantes has some resources in his team. We have to count on the speed and animation off the land of Moses Simon, the only one who seems to be getting his head above water. “Mois Simon, with two goals and three assists, is still the most reliable player. He is the one player who consistently creates differences through his running pace or one-on-ones, even if he doesn’t always make the right choice or move in his ‘last move or last pass. » So it floats a bit, but there are other potentially dangerous players, such as Kadewere and the almost aptly named Lepenant, who will breathe new life into this team. “The only other player who really stands out is Johann Lepenant, who brought some surprise and anticipation to the center for a while. But the hit seems to have already slowed down as he picked up a calf injury last weekend. » And take care of exes? Ignatius Ganago and Jean-Philippe Gbamin, trained at La Gaillette, are present in the team, although Frédéric assures us that they are only present for rotation, and for the moment they are not well obvious

The sky was in her horizon

The two clubs, which seem to be at the bottom of the wave, are still not on the same path. Where RC Lens is in a year of transition, which currently seems to give good reasons for satisfaction in the respect and continuity of the club’s long-term project, FC Nantes is struggling to see anything but being difficult to avoid the blackout. of Ligue 2, “Like three times in the last four seasons”. Without a large project, “Nantes’ only goal at this stage is to win back one day. »

Frédéric Happe, for whom the clash between FC Nantes and RC Lens has a special character as it is his first memory as AFP’s Grand Ouest sports coordinator (victory for Nantes on Yacine Bammou’s goal against Lens coached by A. Kombouaré), wet weather predicted: “2-0 for Lens. This is a team that seems to have the arguments to beat Nantes, while they do not have too much rhetoric in front of the goal. » This will indeed be one of the challenges of the game for the only regular attacker present in the ranks of Lensois, in the person of Rémy Labeau-Lascary, a young sailor trained at the club. Declined, the Lens attack is one of the most abundant in Ligue 1, with only 9 goals. Nantes scored 12. Be careful, supporters of Trannin and Delacourt, there is a risk that the bullets will fall on your head …

So let’s wish each other good luck and maybe no rabbits. Lens must sail completely again, against a struggling opponent. In this legendary club on the Atlantic coast, the first team disappoints, but Frédéric reminds us “The sheer volume of their U19 teams in the Youth League last year, who broke attendance records for an under-19 game at their meetings in La Beaujoire, and the women’s promotion to the elite in just a few years. »