“What is your state of mind regarding the transfer window in the current context?
I am not a worrier by nature and I have often experienced the start of a season with incomplete squads. There will be movements, we are prepared for that, we are living this period with non-existent TV rights, clubs in pain, so we have to get up to speed. The important thing is the preparation day by day, seven weeks before the start of L1, it is to be regular in the sessions and see, because there are players who will be required to leave and we are working on the recruits. For me, the start of the Championship is very far away, seven weeks is the first time I have done so much, so we really have time and I do not know today which team I will start with.
Are your priorities in the middle and at the goalkeeper position?
Yes, the priority is to work to build a squad as close as possible to the one we will start with, so yes today it is the positions in midfield that need to be filled, but at the same time, you have Douglas Augusto (27 years old, contract until 2027) who is still there, Pedro Chirivella (27 years old, 2026) too, so it is also a matter of seeing with them what they are going to do.
For them, the door is open?
Yes, in the discussions we had at the end of the season, they expressed the wish to leave and I am also going in that direction. Pedro is in his fourth season, he wants to go and see elsewhere, so it is good for him and for us too. He has done his time and Alban (Lafont) also wants to leave, so we are also looking at the goalkeeper position, number one and two.
Are you thinking of taking a number one goalkeeper, in particular, without waiting for the possible departure of Lafont (25 years old, 2027)?
Yes, we have the idea that Alban is no longer with us, he is here and in discussions with other clubs, but we are not going to wait for him to leave, we have to work for the start of the season.
“I’m not saying we’re going to play in the Champions League, but 8th-9th-10th, why not. We need to create a dynamic of work, of competition and win back at the Beaujoire (10 consecutive defeats)”
What is the situation for your striker Mostafa Mohamed (26 years old, 2027)?
He is with us and if there are opportunities for him, we will examine them. He does not absolutely want to return to Nantes, he is also looking on his own.
Are you counting on right-back Fabien Centonze (28 years old, 2027), back from loan from Hellas Verona?
He is in good physical and mental health, discussions with him will be important to know what his future holds.
For the moment, you are not targeting a left-back after the end of Nicolas Cozza’s loan?
For now, we have enough players behind us to do the preparation and then we will do it accordingly. I know that anything can happen, as is the case in all clubs.
What ambition are you setting out to achieve?
The goal is to go and get the maintenance as quickly as possible and I would like us to play better than that, to try to climb into the top half of the table, to play better than the maintenance, after which everything is possible, we saw it with Brest. I’m not saying that we’re going to play in the Champions League, but 8th-9th-10th, why not. We have to create a dynamic of work, of competition and win back at the Beaujoire (10 consecutive defeats), I can’t take that anymore, I’ve had three matches, three nightmares.
Was this transfer of Matthis Abline for €10 million excluding bonuses important?
Yes and many agreed with me, he showed very good qualities at the end of the Championship, he is from Nantes, he loves this club, besides I don’t know why he was in Rennes, but he was very happy to know that we were continuing to move forward on the file and it is an investment, a strong sign.
Another key player, Moses Simon (28 years old, 2026) has also been there for a long time… Is he untransferable?
Already, the player is very happy here and wants to continue the adventure, so from there, we continue together. Afterwards, you should never say never, but that’s the case for all players. In other clubs, they say that there are no transferable players, but I always started with the idea that everything is possible. If there is a big offer on the last day of the transfer window that is economically important for the club, you always have to find solutions.
Bastien Meupiyou (18 years old) is a young prospect under contract until 2025, how do you see the future with him?
He and his entourage want him to leave, we would like him to stay, but if he stays he must extend his contract one year before the end of his contract, I do not want him to do a Randal (Kolo Muani, free departure in 2022). Otherwise, he will leave.
Is there still a possibility of recovering winger Bénie Traoré, loaned from January to May?
We are still in contact with his entourage and his club (Sheffield United). For the moment, his club is too greedy and it is a club that is in the process of being bought, but it remains open.
: “Douglas Augusto, Chirivella and Lafont wish to leave”){kind=link}