Auxerre – Stade Rennes: Jota on the wing, ready to fly?
Starting for the first time against Le Havre, the Portuguese is expected again at Auxerre.
He is probably one of the only exciting players of the 12 recruits who arrived this summer. Within a considerably renewed workforce, Jota continues his integration, facilitated by his learning of French started in Saudi Arabia alongside N'Golo Kanté. The winger, who played for Celtic Glasgow, had his first start against Le Havre, 70 minutes during which he struggled to make a difference, and confirmed that it would still take him a little more time before returning to the level that made him fame and led to a song in his honor.
“He is 100% in the fact that he no longer has pain. But he will need a few more matches”tempers Julien Stéphan who continues to discover “someone open-minded who has already discovered several cultures. He manages to blend easily into new environments, he is intelligent. »
Landmarks to take on the left
Aligned on the left wing in a 4-3-3, this is probably the same position he will find at Auxerre. “He is a player who likes to be able to maneuver from an outside position to combine, dribble”analyzes his coach, again recalling the sporting reality of his player. “He played very little last season. I think it will take a little while for it to continue to rise. It's increasing gradually, that's why I'm campaigning for a little patience for these players, even if patience in football is not easy to obtain. You also have to be fair in what you can expect. I hope that it will continue to rise gradually so that from week to week it will gradually regain all the necessary rhythm.”
On the left, Jota forms a pair with Adrien Truffert who is very happy to find a four-man defense in which he feels better, in particular because he has an eccentric above him who can vary his positions. “For the moment things are going well. We have to create automatisms, we try to create as many as possible during training”says the full-back about his new teammate. “The fact that it goes down quite low allows me to go up and it’s these position reversals that can be surprising. Over the course of the match, and with training, we will learn to know each other, know our preferences too, that’s how we will create combinations.”
Already a scorer against Brest, Jota will make his fifth appearance in Rouge et Noir in Auxerre, and playing more than 70 minutes would be a new milestone in his progress. A rise in power expected by all for a Stade Rennes in great need of points and thrills.
