From the final whistle, after Montpellier’s heaviest home defeat, this Sunday October 20 during the 8th day of Ligue 1, Laurent Nicollin explained why he had decided to part ways with his coach.
Heavy defeats, against PSG or other headliners, have often had disastrous consequences for Montpellier coaches. We remember Gérard Bernardet, sacked after a 6-1 setback in Paris 20 years ago.
For his 200th match on the Montpellier bench, Michel Der Zakarian will not have survived the humiliation of his team this Sunday evening against OM (5-0). He is also the first Ligue 1 coach sacked this season after the heaviest defeat in history at home for the MHSC.
“Find a coach who has our DNA”
As soon as the final whistle blew, Laurent Nicollin announced his decision to change coach at a press conference:I saw Michel, we discussed it, it’s over. I make this decision with death in my soul but I cannot change 25 players. I told the players that their work blew up a coach. I was thinking of waiting for the Toulouse match but now, if we don’t change anything, we’ll go straight there.”
“Given the performance and given the attitude I saw this evening, I felt obliged to intervene, to stop our collaboration. It was not heartfelt because he is someone I appreciate enormously. But in life, the important thing is the club, it’s not the people. I’m ashamed for myself, ashamed for my club, ashamed for my supporters.” added the Montpellier president.
“We will try to find a coach who wants to get his hands dirty and who has our DNA,” he clarified. We can spontaneously think of Jean-Louis Gasset, available, or of René Girard, the coach of the 2012 title, who recently said he was ready to come and lend a hand if asked.
The important thing for President Laurent Nicollin is “to have a different spirit against Toulouse on Sunday. Afterwards as coach, I don’t know.”
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