Marseille (AFP)

He thought he was ready but the landing was brutal. After the opening defeat of the Ligue 1 season against Reims (2-0) at the Vélodrome, the new Marseille coach André Villas-Boas is already under pressure on Saturday, before approaching the trip to Nantes.

A lead defeat against a midfielder, a bronca at half-time and the final whistle and a frame "very disappointed": the Marseille season could not start badly.

But this inaugural setback has not buried the Portuguese so far: "If I was worried after the first day, it would be better for me to return immediately to Portugal!", He reassured after the slap.

Supported by his group but hustled by the Vélodrome, André Villas-Boas, worried by a 4-3-3 organization that his players have failed to put in place, should not touch his diagram or his eleven for the trip to La Beaujoire, Saturday (5:30 pm).

"We have to find solutions in the game and I do not think to change in Nantes.A defeat is not the perfect time to punish players.I do not want to think that," swept the technician.

After the sweet American parenthesis (three wins in three friendlies), the return to reality is tough for the Portuguese, landed at the end of May on the Canebière.

"I was waiting for a progression compared to what the players showed in the United States, or against Napoli in friendly, but unfortunately our opponent was very good and we, very bad," lamented the Portuguese technician after the defeat. facing Reims.

"We are very disappointed with the result because the performance was not up to the job," conceded 'AVB', who was hoping a lot of his first at the Vélodrome on the bench Olympian, and who was affirmed "ready" before the match.

- A tactical bankruptcy? -

Since his arrival, André Villas-Boas has imposed a system of play in 4-3-3, which worked rather well during the American tour. But is this new organization the reason for the bad start of the Olympians' season?

For Dimitri Payet, the OM was "unable to be dangerous" against Reims but especially failed in the application: "We did not know how to set up our game face and we exposed ourselves to the counters".

But the attacking midfielder did not question the tactical scheme advocated by his coach: "There is no need to look for excuses in the system, we begin to find our automatisms".

"We did good things in this system, it went pretty well in preparation." If we were powerless in this match (against Reims, Ed), it's more for lack of solution, rebellion, "continued Payet.

It is precisely this lack of fighting spirit that has hit supporters. And their disappointment lives up to the expectations they have placed in their providential coach.

At the end of a failed season, which saw OM finish on the fifth step in Ligue 1 and miss the qualification for Europe, "AVB" symbolized the possible rebound Olympian.

All hope is not lost yet, far from it. "There is no urgency, just the obligation to make a result in Nantes" tempered Dimitri Payet, who has given up his captaincy to Steve Mandanda this season.

Faced with the Canaries, it will therefore simply "a duel between two teams at the same stadium, who have each lost their first game," said the offensive midfielder.

With the ambition to erase the zero point of the Phocéens against Nantes last season.

© 2019 AFP