Rayan Cherki and Pierre Sage during OL – Nice (Photo by Alex MARTIN / AFP)
Substitute at the kick-off for OL – Montpellier, Rayan Cherki did not necessarily have the right attitude when he entered. Pierre Sage explained his initial choice.
Seeing Pierre Sage bet on a 4-2-3-1 against Montpellierno one was really surprised. Faced with a sick team, theOL had to show an offensive face in order to avoid any poor performance. However, in this system with a leader, no trace of Rayan Cherki. The number 18 excels in this position, but his coach chose to leave him on the bench at kick-off. A strong decision to reward Saïd Benrahma after his match in the Coupe de France? In any case, this is what Pierre Sage suggested on Saturday evening, after the victory (1-0). “My choice is made on the week of each person. He had his week, but there is also that of the others who had a good one and who deserved to play. There are several parameters to take into account, but the first to remember is that of having the possibility of re-accelerating with half an hour to go.”
Bad choices and moody gestures upon entry
Having seen an amorphous OL for an entire half, Rayan Cherki could have hoped to return from the break on Saturday evening. Ultimately, Pierre Sage did not wish to act urgently, waiting for a reaction from the incumbents. It never arrived and it was in the 65th minute that the coach made a triple change. This desire to keep Cherki warm was dictated by the desire to “to keep power at a given moment in the match if it was blocked. In this sense, you had to have possibilities on the bench to change the match.”
There was a little more dynamism with the entry of Cherki et Tolisso but the attitude still left something to be desired. Certainly frustrated, the international Espoir often complained for half an hour and made bad choices. What comfort Sage in his decision to have left him on the bench?
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