Building on its success against the promoted Martigues (0-3), Stade Malherbe must now continue against Bastia (Saturday November 2, 2 p.m.) to show that this victory was not a simple brightening in the darkness but indeed a first ray of sunshine after the depression of early autumn. At a press conference this Friday, on the eve of the match, young central defender Brahim Traoré spoke about the importance of this away victory for the team’s morale but also about the change of goalkeeper and expectations. supporters before this home match.
Brahim, was the victory against Martigues a relief?
We were strong and mentally, we knew how to be patient. We scored these three goals which did us a lot of good but we didn’t rush or get into the game as we have been able to do in the past. On the pitch, I felt that we wanted to fight for each other. Something that we had lost a little lately. Not conceding a goal did a lot of good, especially as a defender, it will reassure the entire defensive line. It’s been a long time since we won, we missed it a lot. It’s a lot of positive energy with the addition of Alex Mendy.
Can we really learn from this match against a team that is quite poor offensively?
I think there was something that clicked even though we spoke after the match so as not to get excited because now we have to move on. We went for three points against a Martigues team who still had to be taken seriously by not conceding goals with a complicated pitch and weather. We want to build on this solidity and show it against all the other teams we will meet. If we manage to achieve a positive result against Bastia, there are good things that will happen afterwards, I am convinced.
You were talking about the defensive line, we can also include the goalkeeper. It was Yannis Clémentia’s first this season, how was this change from your central defense experienced?
The clean-sheet is also to the credit of Yannis obviously. He can only be mentally strengthened for the match against Bastia. He’s a very good guy who I talk to a lot off the pitch too, I was very happy for him because he’s been waiting for this moment for a long time. On corners, he is active all the time and tells us as soon as he sees something. What I really like about him is his kicking game, he is very calm on the restart and showed it against Martigues.
Was there also support around Anthony Mandréa in the locker room because it is never an easy situation for a goalkeeper to experience?
It’s a very difficult position with even harder choices than for outfield players because there can only be one on the field. It may be a difficult stage for Antho but I’m sure he will be able to overcome it, he is someone mentally strong. He thinks of the team above all and if the coach decided to put Yannis on it is because his current performances are better.
You have just won away, however the results at home are still below expectations, how can you resolve this?
We are keen to make up for it on Saturday against Bastia. The supporters were very frustrated after the defeat against Troyes and so were we. Before, here it was a fortress, we didn’t concede goals. For some time now, we have been losing and conceding more goals but we will get things back on track on Saturday. I am very confident in the team’s ability to provide a positive response to the fans on the pitch.
Eleven months ago, it was the moment when Nicolas Seube arrived on the bench and by winning against Bastia you had started a good series, is that something that you also had in mind before this match?
I thought about it too. It was against Bastia that we managed to get back on track last season. It was very complicated, it was Alex Mendy who scored at the end of the match. We know that it is a difficult team to maneuver, which does not lose many and which concedes few goals. It will be up to us to be technically strong, to be strong in duels and to be efficient in knowing how to kill the match.
