Thierry Laurey and the Strasbourg people are back in training. - JOHN SPENCER / SIPA

  • After a month of vacation, the RC Strasbourg players resumed training, and finally the tests, on Monday. The collective sessions will wait for mid-July, dixit Thierry Laurey.
  • Who says new season, says new workforce. Two players have already been recruited. A third could follow. The Alsatian coach has clearly defined his profile. “We are looking for a player in front of the defense. "
  • Who will be elected? Why not Maxime Gonalons, who fits perfectly into the type of element sought.

Luxury cars lined up in the parking lot, bodybuilding players and a full press room… It was a day of recovery, this Monday at the Meinau. After a month of outage, RC Strasbourg officially launches its new season. Rather with a smile, evidenced by the long passage of Thierry Laurey in front of the media.

The Alsatian coach was visibly happy to find those he sometimes likes to coach. Proof, he answered all questions for 45 minutes. What to remember from all this? We summarize you.

🔵⚪️Today it's the recovery for @LionelCarole @alex_djiku @Bellegarde_Jr Matz Sels and the others🏃‍♂️💪 pic.twitter.com/OM03KhR24w

- RC Strasbourg Alsace (@RCSA) June 29, 2020

Collective training will wait

Even officially authorized, the classic sessions, with opposition, are not tomorrow for Racing. These first two weeks will be devoted to physical tests. "We calmly resume this week by evaluating everything that should work normally in a pro footballer, details the coach. We will get to the heart of the matter around mid-July. Dimitri Liénard's partners will be entitled to the famous Covid-19 screening this Tuesday morning. "At 7:30 am, you can come if you want, we will test you!" Laughs Laurey, who had not left her sense of humor on vacation. He will go on a training course with his group the last ten days of July, in Evian, where two friendly matches will be on the program, against Nîmes and "a foreign team on a training course in Switzerland". Then meetings in Nancy, Saint-Louis against Dijon, Reims and against Metz will mark the long preparation of Ciel et Blanc, which will resume the championship the weekend of August 22 and 23.

"Put everyone back to a certain level"

The last 10th in Ligue 1 was, with Stade Rennais, one of the few to recall its players from the pronounced deconfinement. During the last three weeks of May, Stefan Mitrovic and his family had been treated to contactless training, with distances to respect, etc. "This time was largely insufficient to get the players back in the game physically but we also found that it was useful for them to find themselves," said the technician with a little perspective. Before emphasizing the work that remains to be done now: “It is as if we had an injured player for three months, that you re-athletize him and that you put him back on your team. You realize it's a little tricky for him. There, there are 25 who are in the same case. Everyone must be brought back to a certain level. "

Our file on Ligue 1

A "player in defense" wanted

Three departures of elements at the end of the contract (Grimm, Ndour, Corgnet), two arrivals of promising young people (Chahiri, Siby), is the Racing transfer window already finished? No and it is rare enough to be reported, Thierry Laurey clearly mentioned his priorities. “These are not positions that we want to strengthen but one. We are looking for a player in front of the defense, possibly. We would like to find someone who has the ability to do the wiper. Something that cleans up well in front of the defense! The names of Rennais Jérémy Gélin or more recently Maxime Gonalons have been mentioned. The former Lyonnais, loaned to Granada by AS Rome, seems to perfectly match the profile sought. "In the middle, there are positions where we lack experience," insisted the Strasbourg coach. “Mahamé [Siby] and Medhi [Chahiri] are not incumbents. We need boys who can guide them, big brothers ”. What Jonas Martin was before his departure last summer in Rennes.

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