Dall’Oglio explains why Abdelhamid remained on the bench at Nantes

Among the coach’s choices at the kick-off of the match between FC Nantes and ASSE, that of leaving him on the bench Yunis Abdelhamidthe captain of ASSE, made people talk. After the meeting, Olivier Dall’Oglio reconsidered the decision he made.

With four changes in his starting lineup compared to the one that started against Nice last week (8-0), Olivier Dall’Oglio tried to breathe new life into his team. So Cafaro, Abdelhamid and Stassin started on the bench and gave way to Old, Nadé and Sissoko. The injured Cornud was replaced by Léo Pétrot.

A captain put on the bench, obviously that gets people talking. If Yunis Abdelhamid has not been unanimous among the supporters since his arrival in Forez, his coach had always renewed his confidence in him this season in Ligue 1. For the first time, he sat on the bench when the match started between the FCN and ASSE.

Without him, Saint-Étienne’s defense, the worst in Ligue 1 (editor’s note, 17 goals conceded with Montpellier) missed again by letting Lepenant open the scoring after 10 minutes of play. Bis repeated in the second period with a second goal from Thomas on a pass from Lepenant who wandered unopposed throughout the action. Proof if some doubted it, that the only Abdelhamid is not the only one responsible for the defensive feverishness of the Greens this season. His replacement, Nadéalternated the very worrying and on a few gestures, the very good, making a copy overall quite average.

Asked about the absence of his captain at kick-off, Olivier Dall’Oglio judged that his player needed to breathe after a busy start to the season for him: “Yunis has done a lot for this team, he has taken a lot of responsibility on his shoulders since the start of the season. He has established himself as a leader and brought his experience to a group where we lack players who know take their responsibilities. I think it was an overdose for him, he needed to breathe and take a step back. He had to resume a certain work protocol to refocus on himself because he gave too much to the group and to the team. collective. He is a very important player in this team, whether for the staff or his partners. He was on the bench today, that’s the life of a footballer.