Saved at the bell by Daylam Meddah, SM Caen avoided the worst against Rodez (3-3), this Friday September 22. Find the reactions of Yannis Clementia and Romain Thomas in the mixed zone.
Yannis Clementia (SM Caen goalkeeper): “It’s a frustrating match. We gave goals and then we didn't have our chance since we hit the post with Alex (Mendy) and our shots which were blocked did not end up in their cage. We lacked success. Personally, I only remember my three goals conceded. If we hadn't taken one, we would have won this match. I'm also frustrated because I tell myself that I was unlucky. On the first and third goals, I make the necessary stop before the ball comes back to an opponent. The second was the result of a deflected shot… It's up to me to work so as not to concede a goal next time.
We knew that Rodez is a very good team, we saw their very good results in previous matches. We wanted this victory but we didn't have success. We suffered a lot but we also knew how to come back into this match, do what we needed to equalize at the end. We're only going to remember that. There are still two trips to make in the league before the break, we will give everything to seek victories.
I don't think we were bad in defense. We were even good at times, notably when Daylam (Meddah) saved on his line at the start of the second half. We know that we were missing something but we must not throw everything away and continue to work to stop conceding these goals.
The Coupe de France match against Bolbec will not be easy. They will play a professional club and give everything. They want to qualify like us. We will have to go to war! »
Thomas: “We could have had more control in the game”
Romain Thomas (captain of SM Caen): “The fact of equalizing at the end is quite positive. Now it's annoying to only take one point. We knew it would be an open match against Rodez but it's difficult to counter everything they put in place. It's not for nothing that they have the best attack in the championship, they are not easy to play and put a lot of energy into it. We found ourselves in difficulty by falling two goals behind. The positive thing is that we reduced the score before half-time, which was good for us. There was still a way to go, the coach told us that the match was for us if we could equalize. We did it, except that we conceded a third goal too quickly behind. The match was completely wild. Of course it's annoying to draw at home but at the end of the year, I think all these points will count. We want to move forward faster but if we are here today, it is because everything is not perfect. You have to continue working to progress in the game.
We could have had more control in the game. The objective was to keep the ball more. We had difficulty moving forward, we lost a lot of balls so we lost confidence and we no longer dared to do it. We cut Alexandre Mendy a little too short but the coach's instructions at half-time were to try to jump the line because we felt that our three midfielders were under pressure on short restarts. We used this game a little more direct. In the first half, we can score: Alex makes a post and the goalkeeper makes a save on his line. They were more realistic than us. We need to be more pragmatic at the back, concede fewer goals and try to raise our goal to continue moving forward.
The series is still positive. The last matches are interesting in content, even the defeat in Metz (1-0). But to gain places, you need series of victories. For the moment, we can't do it so we're still stuck in the second part of the table. Everyone must raise the cursor to change things. There are not 36 solutions, we have to work, hoping to gain even more peace of mind in the game to win these matches.
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I also want to remember Daylam Meddah's goal at the end. It may go unnoticed, but it does us good. We return to the locker room with frustration but a 2-3 defeat would have been difficult to swallow. We have to look at the glass half full to try to make the switch with two difficult trips to Laval and Dunkirk before the break. We have to be as positive as possible and everyone pull in the same direction to achieve victories. »
