At the foot of a month of December to seven games, Sabri Lamouchi believes the Stade Rennais, finally launched on track, is close to the truth.
We saw with our eyes a team dominated in all areas of the game, Thursday in the Czech Republic, and a miraculous victory (1-0). Sabri Lamouchi did not see the opposite, but saw beyond, also: "It was a difficult match, on difficult ground, in difficult conditions. The content was very average, it must be recognized, but there were very important things, team cohesion, generosity, solidarity and efficiency, with great success with a big Tomas Koubek defensively, and offensively because we did not hit the goal very much. "
And the technician to continue: "There were many times when we ran out of success and yet, the content on several occasions was very suitable, very positive, even very satisfying. There is a little the opposite, our efficiency allowed us to carry out a hold-up.
Finally, we can not use this term, but almost anyway. The content did not please you (in the press), but the European matches are very difficult, when I see AC Milan win 1-0 in Luxembourg, it is criticized but did the job. Thursday, my players did the job. In the spring, if we have the pleasure of experiencing European moments, no one will tell us about the content of Jablonec, we will not even remember it. "
The best series of the season?
While playing its twenty-first game of the season against Strasbourg, the SRFC can chain an unprecedented series of four games without defeat, after Nantes (1-1), Montpellier (2-2) and Jablonec (1- 0). Moreover, not losing today, he would beat his longest unbeaten in the league: three games currently (Caen 2-1, Nantes, Montpellier), as late August - early September (Angers 1-0, Marseille 2-2 , Bordeaux 2-0).
"A positive result against Strasbourg is the three points," Lamouchi said yesterday in a press conference. And that would make us spend the best week since the beginning of the season, between the draw in Montpellier and the away win in the European Cup. We have hung on, we are still there, we must not let go, players do not let go and we have to get things going on our side. It's simply being a little more demanding with ourselves, individually speaking and for the collective. "
With seven matches in December, including a group final in the Europa League on 13 against Astana and a league derby on 19 against Nantes, which looks to the quarterfinals, the face of the first half of the season Rennes can change a lot. "November and December are the most important months," said Lamouchi, "which allows you to know what you will play next. This is the state of mind of your group, your players, the individual. And that, it's built. But we have competitors. "
Finally a team cohesion?
"It's a great team victory, everyone was concerned," Benjamin Bourigeaud said on Thursday in the icy Jablonec media zone outside the Strelnice stadium. So, is this SRFC finally in full osmosis? "I want to believe it," said Lamouchi yesterday, ensuring he feels the cohesion of his team. "If you do not feel it, just watch the game on Thursday. In terms of cohesion, I liked it a lot. If you do not have a united group, it does not make the same match. "
Thursday morning, the team revealed tensions in the training of the day before between Hatem Ben Arfa and Benjamin Bourigeaud. "Keep writing and working with your noises ," Lamouchi evacuated yesterday, replying to a colleague from an internet media outlet.
Last year, there were some, altercations ... Was there then a page in a national newspaper? No. And when you say there are no tensions, it's three lines on one side of the page. So do your job, you're right, but do not do it on noises, it's a shame. Those who have had the pleasure of working in a locker room know that these things exist. As a coach, I see a group that lives and I just want that kind of tension. I want players who do not play to be disappointed, I want those who come out during the game to want to play more, it shows that we are in the right, they are concerned. "
The altercation of Wednesday would not have in any case, said the coach: "A quarter of an hour later, it was over. It is you (the press) who feed it as you want, but I will not have fun with you because I have other priorities. "
Submitted to a different human management from last season, given the profiles of some recruits, Lamouchi defends its operation and always attaches great importance to this part of his role: "I have individual interviews every day and before coming here (at the press point, yesterday at 12.30 pm), I made two. They can happen by chance around a cafe, in the field, in my office, in my locker room, in the infirmary. Individual interviews are very important when you want to keep your group alive. "
Always looking for its benchmark victory, the SRFC would therefore be on the right track: "There is one thing I can confirm, it is not the noises that circulate, but it is the fact that players work. The result at Jablonec allows us to hope again in the European Cup, we created a much more positive atmosphere. In the league, a hypothetical victory against Strasbourg could put us back. And to conclude: "It is obvious that we are not far ..."