“La Paillade is still alive.” Already left behind at the bottom of the rankings, Montpellier hopes to bounce back again when Brest comes to Mosson on the 11th day.
So far everything is going bad for Montpellier. Weighed down by a totally leaky defense, a cascade of injuries, which affects several starters, and weakened by a lack of character, the 2012 French champion completely missed the first quarter of the season, during which he conceded eight defeats in ten days. Consequence: the Nicollin family club, which will celebrate its fiftieth anniversary in a week, is six points behind the first relegation, Angers, and will have to work hard to hope to experience a 17th season in a row among the elite.
“La Paillade is still alive. So we have to make people feel it and we need something to click on Sunday. The players will go the extra mile.wants to believe coach Jean-Louis Gasset, who returned to his club on October 22 to succeed Michel Der Zakarian. The skillful technician (70 years old), who knows the workings of the MHSC perfectly, made a precise diagnosis, but he is slow to find the right remedy. Indeed, since its induction the day after the slap (5-0) at Mosson in front of Marseille, Montpellier has suffered two defeats against Toulouse (3-0) and Le Havre (1-0), direct competitors for maintenance. .
Sometimes we start a season badly. There are several examples where quality groups react at a certain time.
Jean-Louis Gasset
“When I arrived, the players were a little traumatized. The two matches against Toulouse and Le Havre did not restore things. However, we must not lose hope. During training on Wednesday and Thursday, we were quite violent in order to take care of the heads, but also the physical and tactical aspects”explains the former assistant to Laurent Blanc in Bordeaux, Paris SG or even the French team. With his experience, Jean-Louis Gasset loses neither his serenity nor his hope and relies on the supposed quality of his squad, ranked in 12th place last season and which has changed little. “Sometimes we start a season badly. There are several examples where quality groups react at a certain moment”he pleads.
To breathe new life into a team undermined by tensions between executives and its former coach, Gasset is awaiting the return of many injured players and of his playmaker Téji Savanier, who will serve his second suspension match in front of Brest. “We are working to ensure that the important players return to their level and that the injured return. If we achieve a good result before the international break and pick up a bit, we will have good days ahead of us.”he insists.
Many important returns
The Swiss international defender Becir Omeragic, the defensive midfielder Joris Chotard, Olympic vice-champion, or the young midfielder Khalil Fayad, victims of muscle injuries at the end of October, should be operational after the international break to negotiate the important meeting at Saint-Etienne. Savanier and young Stefan Dzodic will also be back.
At the same time, the new strong man of Montpellier is working to get back on his feet the executives Benjamin Lecomte, Jordan Ferri or Wahbi Khazri, more or less dismissed by Der Zakarian, and is counting on his recruit Nikola Maksimovic to stabilize a defense at bay (30 goals cashed). Engaged in an emergency about ten days ago, this solid Serbian central defender (32 years old, 1.92 m), who played eight years in the demanding Calcio with Torino or Naples, has a lot of experience, in the meantime the returns from injury of Christopher Jullien and «Kiki» Kouyaté. But time is already running out for Montpellier.
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