Nîmes still wants to believe it! The future in Ligue 1 of the “Crocs” hangs by a thin thread, but hope remains, embodied by the warrior Renaud Ripart, whose goals and versatility have been more than precious throughout the season .
“Three months ago, if we had been predicted that we would still be here today, everyone would have signed. There is nothing lost. There are two matches left and we are scheduled to fight until last, “assured the striker.
Because the crocodile is still moving. In an unfavorable waiver against Nantes, Lorient, Strasbourg and Bordeaux, and weighed down by its goal difference, the Gard club does not give up despite a formidable program with the reception of Lyon on Sunday, then a match in Rennes to end the season.
After a good rebound, with 14 points in seven matches between mid-February and mid-March, Nîmes nevertheless followed up with a period of famine, taking only three between the 31st and 35th days.
But the success in Metz last Sunday (3-0), where Ripart scored his 50th official goal with Nîmes, his eleventh of the season (including six from the penalty spot, editor’s note), revived the objective of maintaining the Crocos, who point to two points from the Nantes barrage before the 37th day.
“A win to believe it,” tweeted Ripart, who has played right back, forward, defensive midfielder and attacking midfielder this season.
– Swiss knife –
“His real place is a central striker or on the right side, where he best expresses all his volume of play. But he has enormous adaptability. His physique is impressive, he runs a lot, he has a volume of play outside. standard, he has three lungs and always thirsts to win, “summed up his former coach Bernard Blaquart.
Ripart, 28, is also a pure Nîmes. He is not the most talented of the squad nor the most technical, but he is a huge hard worker, with a crocodile embroidered on his heart. Born in Nîmes, trained at the club, he is its symbol and DNA.
This Swiss army knife has known everything in the club that formed it, over nine seasons and more than 210 matches, accessions such as relegations, the National, the Ligue 2 and, for three years, the L1.
“Renaud is an intelligent boy, willful, it’s worth gold. He embodies the Nimes of today. The club should make him sign a contract for life”, had also ruled Blaquart.
“I am not a hero, I am a simple person, I just give the maximum and if we do, it will be collectively,” says the player for his part.
But if by a miracle, Nîmes ended up winning its posture, Renaud Ripart would have put all his guts into it.
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