This Sunday afternoon (4 p.m.), in a full Neodif XXL hall in Nantes with 10,000 white-hot spectators, it is a turning point in the French handball championship which is being played out with the reception of PSG. Grégory Cojean, coach of HBC Nantes, runner-up to Paris, would like to put an end to Parisian hegemony but recalls that the two teams do not fight with the same weapons.
How do you approach this match, knowing that it has become the poster child for recent years of the championship?
Grégory Cojean: Yes, it's one of the major posters. There are three teams fighting for the title of French champion. Today, it's close, but Paris is still one step ahead. They are undefeated. They have had a perfect run since the start of the season. Despite a few absences, they managed to hold on and take the points. They are two points ahead. The aim of the game is really to be able to get closer to them before the Christmas holidays and before this mid-season. Because if they have a perfect run and they win 15 games out of 15, and they take a four-point lead over their two rivals, I think it will be difficult to pick them up. Even if everything is possible because we are going to play them in Paris, they are going to play in Montpellier, and they can lose points. But still, it would put them in a very comfortable situation.
“Paris has a very high quality workforce, a budget significantly higher than the others, a payroll which is double that of its opponents. They have built a training center for years with also solid work being done. They have a staff with twice as many people as us. All this investment is paying off.”
Do you have the feeling that you are perhaps better armed than in recent seasons?
I think the team is very focused and gives off something very positive, that's for sure. Now, we are going to play a Paris team which will almost be complete, which is in good shape, which is performing in the Champions League and which is undefeated in the championship. They have players who had not yet found their feet and who are now working at full capacity, like Jacob Holm or Luc Steins, who came back from injury and who is really in very good shape. There is also Yahia Omar, who brings real added value to the Paris team this season. We are missing two wingers, Théo Avelange-Demouge and Noam Léopold in the rotations and also Ayoub Addi who injured his finger against Chambéry and who, even if he is aligned, will not be 100%. I know one thing, that we will do everything to win, that the team is ready to play this match, that they will give everything on the pitch. And then we'll see what happens. We know that these matches are decided on very few things.
How can you explain that for 11 years, this Paris team has always managed to get by, even if there are sometimes moments when you seem very close?
They have a very high quality squad. They have a budget significantly higher than the others, a payroll that is double that of their opponents. They have been building a training center for years with solid work being done as well. They have a staff with twice as many people as we do. All this investment is paying off. And then I think that at some point, the competitors were not ready to challenge them, which is less the case today. But they work well. I think Raul González has done a very good job since he arrived in Paris. We have a better level, we have more experience, we are able to compete. But over the course of a season… Paris is still there.
Do you feel stronger at the H Arena than at the Neodif XXL even if there are 10,000 spectators?
I think we're especially lucky to play in full houses. We are lucky to have an audience that pushes behind us. It's up to us to make the match so that they follow us, that they push us and that they give us this energy. I know that if we have a big match, the public will be behind us. Frankly, we will have to concentrate more on the game than on the rest; it is up to us to take the public along.
You have four players (Minne, Bos, Tournat and Briet) who were called by coach Guillaume Gilles to be in the group of 18 for the preparation camp for the World Cup (January 14-February 2) which begins in eight days. Is this the reward for these players of real progression where you expect even more from them?
Aymeric (Minne) has reached a milestone over the past year. He maintains his level of performance. It is extremely regular, very solid. I'm very happy that he passed this milestone. It's good to see players develop. Thibaud (Briet) still has real room for improvement but he is already very solid and very important for us. All selections are deserved. Today, he is an executive of the France team. Nico Tournat has no worries. And for Julien Bos, it enhances his second game at the start of the championship. He goes on well. This will really give him a boost. In any case, I think he is very happy to be able to participate in this preparation. The first three are in place for me. Julien, with competition for his position, it's not always easy. But by his latest performances, he deserves to be selected.
It could have an impact on the second part of the championship to have boys who will be called upon in January. Do you have an exchange with the coach?
I haven't had one yet but I'm definitely going to get one. Because these players are in high demand with the club. We really need to be able to communicate and manage them well to avoid any problems. I'm going to have an exchange with Guillaume, I think at the beginning of next week.
Can the title finally be played for the French team?
There are a whole bunch of settings. There are the matches, the calendar… There are also the injuries, injury management, injury time. All that is decisive. We are on our 27th official match in less than 4 months. We had rather been spared from injuries. There, we have 2-3 absent. I hope that we will reduce the number of injuries as much as possible. Paris had the strength not to lose points at a time when they had injuries. It's part of the game too.
Do you feel the “positive” pressure around you, with a large number of supporters who say with all the work that has been done over the past 10 years, this club must be rewarded with a title today?
You have to be lucid. Paris always has the biggest budget, the biggest means. They are more staffed, stronger than us. They have a squad which, in terms of experience, national selections, titles, is superior to ours. Even if we move forward, even if the team gains experience and the players progress and we perform more and more. At the start of the season, the favorite is Paris. The strongest, most experienced squad is Paris. We must not hide it. So yes, we have a big desire, there is popular support, there is a big commitment on our part and we all have this objective. But you also have to be fair and have a good analysis of the situation.
