This Thursday, two days before the PSG reception, Will Still, coach of RC Lens, was present at a press conference. If the Artesian coach showed his ambitions before this third match against the Parisians, he also mentioned a possible Koyalipou-Nzola association in a 4-4-2. Find his full statements.
The group point
Satriano and Labeau-Lascary are still injured (cross), Chavez will be unavailable. Question mark for Fulgini, who had pain in his ischio. He came back today in the collective session. Denis Petric has back pain because of the synth, that will also be a question mark. The good news is Aguilar, El Aynaoui, and Saïd who are back.
PSG
We learned a lot of things from these two matches, we had time to carefully analyze this Paris team. Our match last week proved that we were able to adapt, so that leaves us with a lot of options. It will be up to us to find the best scenario for this match, knowing that we want to look for a little more than a draw like in the Cup. A victory would be welcome.
We are aware of what we offered in the two matches against them. In the first match in Paris, we were a little passive in the first half. The second was much better. In the Cup, what we put in place was good. We missed a lot of opportunities in transition, and we lost on details. The important thing is to stand up to this team, which has the best players in the championship. We manage to be equal and annoy them, we will have to be very, very good. There are positives to come out of these two matches, that's for sure.
The centers
There is a gradual evolution. We want to continue to bring these balls within 16 meters. We want to bring a variation to the types of centers. There are quite a few options to consider. In Le Havre, there were 2 balls in the second zone, it's very, very good. There is also the aspect of the race, the timing, the presence in the zones, the impact. On the first goal, the cross is perfect, the execution is correct. On the second, it is much better with the piston which centers for another piston. We must continue and bring this variation that we have in our centers, it is progressive work. Koyalipou occupies the opponent's 16 meters extremely well, he has an eye for goal and the timing needed to be decisive, that's a plus.
Solutions to replace Danso, suspended
It proves the quality of the group we have. We have a lot of options. We needed Jo Gradit against Le Havre, and he did things well. We have sources of danger to annoy Paris. We knew there was competition, and the best will play. If Jo is one of the best, he will be on the field.
The match against City already on PSG's mind?
Their coach has made it clear that the match against Lens is an important match. I don't think they will think of anything else. There will be a good and real PSG in front of us.
Gradit
He can play with 4, as well as with 3. For a central defender, there are not that many differences. I said it, I have complete confidence in him. He will play if he is good. He's just as good at 3 as at 4, there's no problem there. Jo is more than mature enough to make up for a speed deficit if he has one. He has this experience and this sense of positioning which allows him to anticipate danger.
A Koyalipou-Nzola attack?
We have used a number 10 in recent weeks with Fulgini, but there is no problem playing two attackers together. They are complementary. Nzola is a point of support, Koya takes more depth. They are perfectly capable of playing together. Koya has quite a few positions in his playing palette, so that's good.
Cédric Berthelin and Hervé Koffi
Koffi's situation is that he is number 1. He is playing, he is playing well, and if he continues, he will play. He's good, but people said it was difficult for him, I don't think that's the case. Cédric, he brings personality, a real presence in the sessions. He's a good person too so his integration was easy. We know the link between him and Hervé, so it’s the best of all worlds.
The PSG match against Espaly
Offensively, they are super dangerous because they scored 4 goals. They have a capacity to hurt, and beyond that, not much to say with the offensive armada they have. There are also small flaws that we will try to punish.
A defense of 5 or 4?
The match against PSG in the Cup, the scenario was different. Here, we are more in a search for continuity and logic. Starting at 5 remains a possibility. We have fairly strong playing principles that we want to implement in the long term. But the scenario and the context are still different.
Andy Diouf
We spoke to him before Le Havre, telling him that it had been 6 months, that he had a clear margin for improvement, but that we were going to continue to be demanding. He must improve in certain aspects, in taking information on balls from behind. He sometimes has too many touches of the ball where he will be stubborn, and he needs to increase his stats. It's positive because he continues, but I'm going to continue to annoy him until the end because he has crazy potential. He must be demanding of himself, he must take this step to become a determining player. He listened, he was hungry to want to progress. If he passes this milestone, he will be a very, very good player, with a very good level for the rest of his career. He has finished his post-training phase, and he is reaching an age where he needs to become a mature player. This is the ideal age to push, and he has all the capabilities to do so. It’s up to us to support him.
Does the scheme really change anything against PSG?
It doesn't change anything, because they come man on man all the time. The question is just how to eliminate this man-on-man situation. There is this scenario where when you play against Paris, you will have to get out of certain delicate situations. We've worked on it, we have an idea of how to get out of these situations, so it's up to us to execute it and be good technically.
The integration of Koyalipou
Training is the main thing. The more he sees our playing principles, the better. In two days he has already proven himself. He has the chance to join a very homogeneous group. There are also other aspects like the video to show our playing principles. He is an intelligent boy, he quickly understood what project he is in.
Young players to loan
It is essential for them. The gap between youth football and professional football is large, like that of N3 and Ligue 1. For them, playing in a context in L2, in National, or abroad, it allows them to being in a professional environment on a daily basis. Playing regularly can only be beneficial for them. I'm the first to want to join them, but there are quite a few people ahead of them. It's a bit like Labeau-Lascary, who was loaned to Laval, who came back, and in the end we integrated him to make him important.
Sidi Bane will probably go to Annecy, will Ismaëlo Ganiou follow… We want these guys to play and be important. This is not to say that they are not good enough, but to help them and integrate them definitively into the professional group.
William Tertrin, at Gaillette.
