Mathieu Warnier, Media365: published on Saturday November 9, 2024 at 9:30 p.m.
While Saint-Etienne travels to Lyon this Sunday at the end of the 11th day of Ligue 1, Romain Hamouma motivated the Saint-Etienne players with an intense speech during a training session.
It’s a moment that the people of Saint-Etienne have been waiting for almost three years. This Sunday, during the closing poster of the 11th day of Ligue 1, Saint-Etienne travels to Lyon for the 125th derby between the two teams, the first since January 21, 2022 and a victory for OL at home in a Groupama Stadium limited to 5,000 spectators by the coronavirus pandemic. A meeting that Romain Hamouma knows very well, he who scored four times in such a poster. Now coach of the attackers within the technical staff led by Olivier Dall'Oglio after ending his career in August 2023, the former striker did not fail to explain to the current Saint-Etienne players what this poster represents for the club and its supporters. During a training session, he gave a motivational speech which was shared by AS Saint-Etienne via a video published on social networks.
Hamouma: “The Derby, play it hard”
“It’s a session where we’re going to gain confidence, I want you to be as focused as possible,” he first confided. Ignore that, take pleasure, take it because it's rare to experience. » When discussing the meeting itself, Romain Hamouma urged his players not to play it before kick-off and to leave aside the pressure inherent in such a meeting. “The Derby, play it to the fullest, don't be spectators of the Derby for those who will play it,” said Olivier Dall'Oglio's assistant. Be part of the Derby. Trivialize failures, we don't care. Everyone is going to have failures. Play from the heart, have fun. » A speech which could contribute to a more serene approach to the event by an inexperienced Saint-Etienne team but which could reverse the trend. Indeed, before the relegation of AS Saint-Etienne at the end of the 2022-2023 season, the Lyonnais remained on four victories in the last five confrontations in Ligue 1.
