Saint-Étienne – MHSC: the lessons of maintenance that can be learned after the defeat on Saint-Etienne soil

Winning ugly. This is the title of a book written by former American tennis player Brad Gilbert which can be translated into French as “Win dirty”. We are not going to put the victory of Saint-Étienne against Montpellier (1-0) in this category but when we play for maintenance, according to the established formula, “the important thing is the three points”.

And the Stéphanois, who have known since the start of the season that they will fight to keep their place in Ligue 1, have understood this well. And their coach, the former Montpellier coach, Olivier Dall'Oglio, accepted it. He, rather adept at playing forward, has obviously revised his ambitions, surely dampened by the start of the season for his men and in particular a heavy defeat in Nice (8-0).

ASSE therefore won, Saturday evening, at home, against MHSC, with only 33% of ball possession and by playing the counter-attack, taking advantage of one of the only poor absences to score. “We saw the excitement, no one wanted to give in, which was logical, with technical errors on both sides”remarked ODO.

In this context, Montpellier had the ball, multiplied the actions but not the clear chances (0.96 ). Hence the logical frustration after the match of not having at least brought back a point from Geoffroy-Guichard, especially against a team competing for maintenance. And the fact of having taken a lesson in realism, which matters above all, when you want to stay in Ligue 1.

Eighteen matches in a row with one goal conceded

Montpellier was not prepared to play in this championship but the players seem to have understood it. It's difficult to question their state of mind on Saturday in Saint-Étienne, unlike many matches at the start of the season. They simply lacked skill in front of goal and failed to keep a clean sheet for eighteen consecutive matches. It becomes difficult to win when you always concede at least one.

Since the arrival of Jean-Louis Gasset, the MHSC has been less permeable but we can ask ourselves whether we should not be less playful? Should we be more compact and focus more on the counterattack like Saint-Étienne did? Do Montpellier have the players to develop like that knowing that Téji Savanier, their playmaker, is more comfortable when his team has the ball? These are the questions that Jean-Louis Gasset, the Montpellier coach, must work on.

Knowing that the next opponents are top-of-the-table teams (Lille, Lens, Nice) and that they like to have the ball. But possession or not, the most important thing remains realism. “Efficiency cannot be bought in football”underlined the Hérault coach but it would be good to demonstrate it.

The content is interesting

Especially since the content was interesting and the progress in the game is undeniable. “I’ve been here for a month, but it’s true that when I see my team play like that, I tell myself that they didn’t deserve that.” the coach said in despair after the game.

But Montpellier last, three points behind the jump-off Nantes and the penultimate Angers, already has no time left. You have to win, even « ugly ».