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The podcast of this interview can be listened to at the bottom of the page.
WebGirondins: what do you remember from this victory in Bordeaux? This is the first defeat at home for Burno Irlès' men.
Jacques Pichard: first of all, it's the stadium, and the atmosphere created by the Girondins. The audience is exceptional. To compete, and to win, it's even more beautiful, because the Gironde public never gave up on their team. There is a history in Bordeaux. Congratulations to our players, the club, and the hundred or so supporters who came. It’s the victory of an entire city and a club, because we are “little thumb”. We were capable of doing something.
“Mentally, psychologically, we won the match”
How do you explain this victory?
We studied Bordeaux well on video. Their anchor is Andy Carroll who then passes through the flanks to make crosses and gain concessions. We had made the choice not to change our system and not to suffer too much on the whole and on the sides. We knew how he played. It must be recognized that there were dangerous situations for Bordeaux.
Bordeaux finished the match at 9, did you feel the Girondins nervous?
We started our meeting well, they have maturity with players who have experienced the high level. Our duty was to manage our emotions. As the minutes passed and after leading the score, they became annoyed with a choppy second half. They couldn't do what they had planned. Mentally, psychologically, we won the match even if we suffered. We wanted to get out, because we saw that we could put them in danger. Physically, it was complicated for our players, even if we had a bench with potential starters. We didn't give up and we believed in it, even in stoppage time. The 8 minutes of added time were legitimate. It could go one way or the other. Then, the Bordeaux players lost their footing following the penalty.
“Our goalkeeper had cramps”
What did your goalkeeper have, because we often saw him stopping the game?
We discover Ibrahima Sy, because he only joined us a few weeks ago. Our starting goalkeeper was suspended for 9 games against Les Herbiers, so we decided to recruit a player. We knew him from his career (Marseille, Lorient, Vannes). He himself doesn't understand, because he had stomach cramps at half-time and then his legs. Is it the pressure of the match, of the stadium? I think it was not intentional. We didn't have a second goalie.
“The Girondins must not give up”
You are 4th in the ranking today
Our objective is always the same, to take points and take cover to stay in national 2. We are still not at the end of the matches, the road is long. I'm sending a message to the Girondins: “They must not give up, it's still a long time, there are 15 or 16 games left and football is going very quickly.” For our part, we are enjoying this weekend, and then we will have to come back to earth and think about the next match.
Nicolas Pietrelli
>> N2: results and ranking of the Girondins
