The international break finally over, we are back to our Olympique de Marseille this Sunday evening. On the program, a match against the last of Ligue 1, the DFCO. In anticipation of this match, a Dijon supporter agreed to answer our questions.
Salvation ! To start, could you introduce yourself quickly (name, age…)?
Hello my name is Lilian @ Dijonnaisdu21 on Twitter I am 18 years old and I have been a supporter of Dijon Football Côte d’Or for almost 10 years.
How long have you been supporting DFCO and what made you love this club?
I have been supporting Dijon for almost 10 years, my first match at Gaston Gérard was May 20, 2011 for the 37th day of league 2. It was a match for our 1st rise in league 1. That day we received Boulogne-sur-Mer the match ended with a score of 1-1 . Since that day, I have been following the club. I like this club because it is the club in my city and therefore I can go to the stadium regularly and it is also the club that introduced me to football because before that day I did not follow football. It was also my brother who suggested that I go see the match because he had been following the club for years.
Dijon is in great difficulty this season in League 1 and is in 20th place. We are thinking of relegation to league 2. What do you think of the start of the season?
The start of the season is catastrophic. 15 points and 2 victories in 30 matches, including 2 away victories (Nice: 3-1 and Nîmes: 3-1). Dijon has only scored 20 goals in 30 games, the attack is not at all effective. We are on a series of 10 defeats in a row in league 1. We do not win at home… As our president would say, out of the 26-27 players there are only ten who fully defend the club’s colors . It’s a season to forget. For me, a descent in league 2 yes it’s annoying but it will allow us to rebuild a real team with players who want to.
-What didn’t work for the DFCO this season? What must be changed for the team to regain victory?
First of all, we closed our transfer window much too late so by the time the players got to know each other and took their bearings, a good ten days had already passed. The losses of executives like Tavares, Amalfitano, Gomis etc…. did a lot of harm to the club. In the workforce in Dijon, we have 18 different nationalities. It’s huge, not all players speak the same language, so it is difficult to communicate well on the pitch. The wound of Benzia hand (buggy accident after the 1st confinement) also plays. He started training again at the start of 2021 and replayed his first match against Brest on March 3. What needs to change in my opinion is a good part of the workforce. Many will leave with the descent, many are at the end of their contract … We must rebuild a workforce with players who want to defend the club and more play young people.
In this season, who do you think are the best Dijon players?
At the start of the season Racioppi Impressed us a lot and saved us a few times but for quite a few games he is no longer too decisive. Forwards score very little: our top scorer (Mama Balde : 6 goals) has not scored since January 27 during the 3-2 defeat at Lorient.
If you have followed OM this season, who are the Marseille players that you fear the most? Who are the most dangerous Olympians?
For me Thauvin can hurt us a lot because he’s your top scorer this season. Your new recruit Belong can be dangerous, he has just arrived in France and will want to score the most goals before the end of the season.
In the first leg, the final score was 0-0. What memories do you keep of this match between DFCO and OM?
I remember one of our strikes that ended up on your post, which saves you. It also seems to me that Racioppi made some nice stops that night.
OM are coming out of a heavy 3-0 defeat against Nice in difficulty this season? Is this result reassuring for you before this meeting?
Not at all, you just lost 3-0 in a derby, you need points to get a European place and you receive us when we are last and we are almost dead. It is not really reassuring for us.
Which Dijon lineup would you line up to face OM?
Racioppi; Chala; Coulibaly; Ecule Manga; Chafik; Lautoa; Dobre; Celina; Chouiar; Mama Baldé; Konate.
What is your prediction before this match?
I do not see us winning at the velodrome so I would say victory for Marseille 2-0 with goals of Belong and of Florian Thauvin.
Many thanks to Lilian for all of the answers. Hoping to attend a great match Sunday night between OM and DFCO and be able to return to victory after this sad match against Nice.
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