"A club that must be in Ligue 1": Mathieu Bodmer close to his bet to put Le Havre back in the elite of football

Jean-Baptiste Sarrazin / Photo credit: Laurent Sanson / LS Medianord / DPPI via AFP 19:02 p.m., May 04, 2023

Le Havre soon back in Ligue 1? Crowned with an almost perfect season five days from the end, HAC is at the top of the Ligue 2 standings with six points ahead of runner-up Bordeaux and nine points more than third place Metz. A comfortable lead to hope to find the elite of French football and which reflects the very good work of the new Le Havre staff. Among the club's new leaders is former player Mathieu Bodmer, who was appointed sporting director in the 2022 offseason. Present in the show Europe 1 Sport (every evening from 20 hours to 23 hours live on Europe 1), the former defender of Paris Saint-Germain "hopes to go up at the end of the season".

Le Havre, who have suffered only one defeat this season in Ligue 2 (August 6, 2022 against Valenciennes on the score of 2 goals to 1), "is a club that must be in Ligue 1," said Mathieu Bodmer at the microphone of Jacques Vendroux. "It's been too long that they have been in Ligue 2, that it vegetates. I hope we can make people proud and happy to be able to see Ligue 1," he continued. Relegated to the second division since the 2009-2010 season, Le Havre has never been so close to the elite for more than ten years now.

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Winning bet

This renewal of the HAC was made possible thanks to the winning bet of Vincent Volpe, the majority shareholder of the club, who gave carte blanche to Mathieu Bodmer last summer. To meet this challenge, the new sporting director of the "Ciel et Marine" has surrounded himself with trusted men: the president Jean-Michel Roussier who had hired him on Téléfoot La Chaîne, the head of recruitment Mohamed El Kharraze, his first educator in Evreux, and Luka Elsner, his last coach in Amiens.

"We had our hands free. We were left to find our ideas, to work as we wanted, whether in the youth, in the women or in the pros, "acknowledged Mathieu Bodmer in Europe 1 Sport. Granted, this new staff has thus managed to establish new habits within the club such as the removal of the green setting for players before matches. "We made everything optional: muscle awakening, lunch, nap, etc.," explained the sports director of the HAC.

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Record in sight

Close to Ligue 1, Le Havre also makes its mark on Ligue 2 thanks to its very good season. By overcoming its neighbor and rival Caen last weekend (2-1), Le Havre players are now unbeaten for 31 matches in the second division, a first since the performance of Sedan between May 1954 and February 1955. Le Havre is therefore only one match away from this unprecedented performance. The Normans will just have to get a draw against Rodez next Monday to beat this 68-year-old record. And Mathieu Bodmer does not want to let slip this record: "We will be there on Monday to equal the record of Sedan," he assured.

31 - Le Havre are unbeaten in their last 31 Ligue 2 matches (18 wins, 13 draws). Since the post-war period, only Sedan (32 – May 1954 to February 1955) has had a longer unbeaten streak in the division. Ligue 1? #SMCHAC

— OptaJean (@OptaJean) April 29, 2023

At 40 years old, the sporting director of the HAC has more than fulfilled the objectives of the beginning of the season. Courted by some Ligue 1 clubs for next season, the former defender remains focused on the future of his club. He hopes to build a competitive team for the next level in the next transfer window. And Mathieu Bodmer is convinced: he "has the best club in Europe. There is a history, there is a liability. It's a club that was just a little sleepy" but is about to wake up, he said.