Find the words of Christophe Galtier after the draw between Nice and Marseille (1-1).
Coach, how do you analyze this match?
I think my players should have won. I am disappointed for them. We had a very big first half hour, totally different from what we did during the first meeting against Marseille, with a game plan that is certainly different. It put them in difficulty. If we could have worsened the score and scored this 2nd goal in the first period, the match would surely have been different. We relaxed on the last 10 – 12 minutes of our first period. Relieved our pressure and made technical errors which put Marseille back in the direction of the game. Through a good action, they scored a good goal. Even if in an action there are always mistakes, in its conception, it was a beautiful goal. In the second period, unfortunately, the only top striker we had left was injured quite quickly, while Evann was putting in a very good performance. At that time, things get complicated, because you lack the cartridges to maintain pressure on the Marseille defense. If we let them play, they are good, they are even in a comfort zone. But even having made changes, we tried to continue to put them under pressure. We could have, in a few situations, including a few set pieces, playing fairer, be more dangerous. We didn’t get there. That’s why I say it’s a shame for my boys, who nevertheless provided a very interesting match 3 days after the match against Lyon.
Did you plan to start Evann Guessand?
I had a reflection between Kasper and him in the preparation of the match, which was obviously very short. I had asked Evann, yesterday in the work, to imbibe a role of titular compared to what I was going to ask. Kasper had to return for personal reasons. I quickly warned Evann that he was going to start the game and that he had to remember what we had worked on. We worked in the field again this morning. But there it is. He is a young boy on whom I have a lot of hopes, and on whom I place a lot of demands. He has an interesting profile, with the characteristics of a modern striker. On his first tenure, against a quality opponent, with many absentees in this offensive sector, and especially on the sides, he was very interesting. But unfortunately he got injured and got out way too early in this game. He sprained his ankle and will surely be forfeited on Sunday.
Is there any frustration that you were leading 1-0 on August 22?
No. I evacuated it. I didn’t want to be there in the preparation for the match, especially through you, the media. There is so much going on today in French football, and especially in the stands … We thought that what happened in Nice – the decisions and the sanctions that were taken – would calm everyone down. world in the stands. It was not the case, we saw it on certain matches. But no, there is no frustration over that. It is the story of a season. We lose a point. We are sanctioned with one point. It’s like that. You don’t have to live with that, on the contrary. We have to work, develop our players and improve our game to be even more efficient.
Does the draw make sense to you?
No, that’s not what I said. Do Marseille have a lot of situations in the 2nd half?
No, but they got the ball …
Having the ball does not mean that we create situations for ourselves. In clear situations, we have two face to face and a ball that unfortunately Hassane does not control, with a very good center. These are important goal situations. I don’t want to say that Marseille weren’t good, but on the goal situations, the chances, we deserved to win. But the story of a match is always about scoring goals. And unfortunately, we did not know how to put one more than our opponent.
Da Cunha bangs on the door like others?
Yes, they are there. They must continue to invest a lot on a daily basis. That they also harden themselves through these matches. Marseille is a European team with all that that entails: technical quality, tactical quality, but also at the level of athletic quality. There is a lot of intensity, weight, size. Our young players are not used to this kind of confrontation, except through our training sessions. That’s why I want very intense training sessions, because when they have to get into a match like this, you have to meet that challenge as well.
3rd place after 11 days?
The team can progress. But there are games, like Sunday, where we could have lost and have 3 points less. Here we are, is it flattering or not? Compared to what my players do in training and everything they give, I’m glad they found themselves in this position. But this is only anecdotal. The championship is still long. We still have many areas for improvement. It is also through these matches and adversity that we have to improve. We are 3rd after 11 days. It’s a good start to the championship but we still have a match coming up on Sunday, against a tough opponent. At home, the Angevins are very difficult to play. It is always important to run the point counter. We have just done it in these two matches, and not in any confrontation, against Lyon and Marseille on neutral ground. It’s good but we have to improve our strengths, our ability to control when the opponent pushes. As much as we managed to put Marseille under pressure, Marseille managed to put us under pressure. And under pressure, we have to improve if we want to be more efficient in terms of points gained.
What did you say to Sampaoli in the ear?
When there is no one, we speak and we have this ability to be heard, so everyone speaks. Obviously, in a match, you never speak in a low voice. There were discussions and exchanges aloud between the Marseille bench and the Nice bench. I just asked Jorge to keep everyone calm. There couldn’t be a problem in the stands, there couldn’t be any on the bench. It ended well and it’s much better that way. We also have a duty to convey a very positive image, even if this is not always obvious.
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