Paris (AFP)

PSG recruit for next season, the French international left rear wing Mathieu Grébille spoke to AFP about his new challenge as well as the "questions" raised in the handball world by the coronavirus pandemic.

Q: When was your first contact with PSG?

A: "It was done during the second part of the 2018-2019 season, PSG contacted me after the World Cup in Germany. It was not a simple choice after twelve years spent in Montpellier but it was a huge opportunity and opportunity to experience a new adventure. I had known everything in Montpellier and I had hitherto refused to leave but I still had in my heart this desire to discover something else, another structure It was an opportunity to continue to evolve at the highest level with very big players and in ideal conditions, while staying in France. It was a coherent choice and a real challenge to start a new chapter. , you sometimes have to get out of your comfort zone. There will be a lot of matches and challenges to take up but it's all the more exciting. It will also be a complicated and busy year since there will be the French team with the Olympics and the World Cup. "

Q: How did you experience this particular end of the season and the end of the championship due to the coronavirus?

A: "It was difficult for everyone. But the most important thing was health and it made more sense for everything to stop. We had done a good part of the season and therefore the fact that it stop, there is a taste of unfinished and we start to feel the lack of ground. But that's what we had to do to protect us. When we go back, it will give nice things because everyone will be even more motivated and hungry for the ball. Personally, it also gives me time to prepare for my future change, to move on and to organize myself to settle in Paris. "

Q: Are you worried about resuming and have you been impacted financially?

A: "There are still a lot of questions. But there is a start date for the championship that has been set (September 23, editor's note) and that allows us to project ourselves. What was difficult at the beginning was that we had no idea where we were going. The pre-season physical tests will help maintain the body and prepare it for a gradual recovery after a long break. On the financial side, I was impacted since I have been on partial unemployment since the start of confinement, so I lost part of my income. But we are not the most to be complained about. We also have questions about the evolution of the health situation. you can play handball again but people can't come back to see the games, that's a real problem for the clubs. They can't afford to play behind closed doors, ticketing is a big part of their income. "

Interview by Keyvan NARAGHI

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