Football: Nîmes Olympique, an Épinal in the foot…

Orphé Mbina avait ouvert le score après 18 secondes à l’aller, puis Nîmes avait craqué contre Epinal (1-3). Et la saison a basculé… Midi Libre – MiKAEL ANISSET

National/28th day. Épinal – Nîmes, Friday April 5 at 7:30 p.m. Surprised by the Vosges promotion on the first leg, the Crocos, relegated, must win again to escape the red zone. And quick.

"Nîmes is not a team of painters. It's a good team with good players, it's not at the rank it deserves." The tribute from Dijon coach Benoît Tavenot, last Friday in Burgundy after the draw between DFCO and NO (1-1), went straight to the heart of his Gard counterpart Frédéric Bompard. The problem is that it doesn't go straight to the rankings. With seven days remaining, the Crocodiles are still relegated, and the alarm bell has been sounded at La Bastide, the club's training center.

Frédéric Bompard : "For me, this is the most important match of the season"

"I'm obviously worried, concedes coach Bompard. Everyone tells us  : you are not going to go down with the team you have and the game you produce, but I am a Cartesian, I count the points. We have too many draws (11, division record with Châteauroux, Editor's note), we’have never scored more than two goals in a match… Would I understand if we went down with this group? No, I would have difficulty understanding, because no one gives up, from the players to the staff through Sébastien Larcier (the sports director). But it can happen… in any case, I avoid thinking about it!"

The Nîmes technician only thought of one thing this week: winning in Épinal, penultimate on the ropes, which remained in a draw and five defeats. It's up to the Crocos to knock out the Vosges. "This match is crucial. For me, it’s the most important of the season. That’s what I’m going to tell the players. We have an obligation to win. The points, now, you have to take them in threes!"

The coach's speech is offensive. On the pitch, will his players be too ?

The coach's speech is offensive. On the pitch, his players will be too ? The penultimate attack of the championship (27 days, 27 goals) must no longer miss penalties or aim for the posts. The scorers Mbina and Sané are operational and will surely play together at the forefront at one point or another. The “jokers” Thoumin and Laurens revolve around their first achievement in National. The Mexico and Picouleau midfielders are not the clumsiest. Mbemba knows how to do it, and Camara was Spine's second top scorer when he joined Gard.

1-3 at the beginning of November, a turning point in the championship

He had also exploded the Gard defense on the way to the Antonins. Then bottom red, the capital of the Vosges won 3-1 on November 3 and turned NO's season in the wrong direction, with the first of their six consecutive losses.

It’s time to reverse the course of history. And to remove an thorn from your foot. It’s football, not MMA with Cédric Doumbé, but you’ll have to fight to save your crocodile skin, all the same.

Behind the scenes of the Crocos: Burner and Doukansy injured, no reunion with Sidy Sarr!

THE CROCO GROUP Paradowski, Sbaï, Labonne, Diouf, Mendy (cap), Paviot, Delpech, Sacko , Mexico, Picouleau, Camara, Sané, Mbina, Mbemba, Thoumin, Laurens.
17th man: Cozzella (l.).

Absent: Diallo (suspended), Burner (adductors), Doukansy (knee), Doucouré (hamstrings), Dias (l., recovery), Ondoa (l.), Sy, Ngakoutou, Wade (coach's choice).

L’ADVERSAIRE Epinal will have to do without its top scorer (Lepaul, who left for Angers), its best passer (Luvualu , injured) nor his captain (Cher, excluded at Le Mans). And without his flagship recruit of the winter, a certain Sidy Sarr, who was an intermittent Croco from 2019 & 2022… and condemned in December 2023 & 6 months suspended prison sentence and 30,000 euros; fine for prostitution of minors.

He was lost in Spain (Ponferradina) then in Portugal (Chaves). Arrival in the Vosges in March, Sarr (27 years old) is not yet operational. He would be overweight…

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