What if the defeat of the Marseillais in Rennes last Wednesday (2-1) had left more traces than it seems? Still, after having played more than an hour to ten against a direct competitor, it seems obvious that OM has left some juice, physical as nervous, to defend its goal and to undergo the Rennes assaults that will have ended up hitting the mark. Saturday against Reims at the Vélodrome, the Olympians could not pack a match that seemed yet affordable although dangerous, as always, against the teams who know how to camp in their half of the field to better squirt in the back of the local defenders. More than a lack of imagination, a lack of physical cash seems to frustrate OM.
Breathless players after overloaded weeks
André Villas-Boas declared last week that some players were digging into their reserves and were in the red. This was confirmed on Saturday, especially since the Portuguese also speaks of mental wear and tear (see video), noting the very passable game of Boubacar Kamara, usually the hub of the Olympian defensive axis. Against Reims, the kid seemed to be fifteen years older, which does not yet make it a total flop but contrasts with the usual performances of the boy who is more tonic than wait-and-see. In his way of slowing down the game and struggling in his placement across the field, it’s hard to ignore that the body seems to have run out of fuel and prevented him from energizing the transitions between his defensive and offensive line. The observation also applies to Hiroki Sakai, widely used since the start of the season and who seems to lose all sense of lucidity in his last gestures, even if fighting spirit never shies away from him. In slow motion and lacking the fuel necessary for the revolt too, Dimitri Payet: the Marseille winger has missed almost everything and has never seemed able to resume his match in hand, deprived of the technical accuracy which often makes his mark. made.
Angers, high intensity match
Whether mental or physical (or both), the poor performance of the Marseillais against Reims cannot obscure the control they have regained in recent weeks. Everything is not to be burned because of a failed match, and if the time is not to excuse everything, it is above all a matter of looking ahead to the last match of the year at Angers. It will not be a walk in the park, the Angevins imposing a physical fight at all times and demanding intense intensity in the transitions, in the hope of unbalancing their well-oiled defensive block. Last season, OM had chosen, with success, to wait for the Angevins in order to better counter them, and thus to catch them in their own trap. This time, it may be a question of inventing again, or rather of finding the right balance between the certain fatigue of the Marseillais and the imperative to shake up Stéphane Moulin’s team in order to glean three points. Because they are important if OM want to spend the holidays warm and recharge the batteries serenely.
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