Nîmes Olympique: a crocodile team with two faces and a victory to end the preparation

Issam Bouaoune was used in support of the attacker. He was the origin of the first goal. Midi Libre – Alexis BETHUNE

Nîmes finished its preparation by winning 2-0 against Cannes, Friday August 9 at the Stade des Antonins. Players in the first half, the Crocos suffered in the second but kept their goal inviolate.

A week before the opening of the Championship and the reception of Orléans, Nîmes Olympique won its eighth preparation match by beating Cannes (N2) 2-0, Friday August 9 at the Antonins. The Crocos showed two faces. In the first half, they played well, in line with what Adil Hermach, their coach, asks of them, and scored twice. In the second half, they disappeared, were put under pressure but they didn't give up, defended together and didn't concede a goal.

In the field, five old and five new at kick-off

Amara, with a crushed foot (nothing serious) and spared, was the only recruit missing from this dress rehearsal. In the field, at kick-off, there were five veterans (Sbaï, Diouf, Mendy, Picouleau, Camara) and five new ones (Beneddine, Akkal, Bouaoune, Marcel, Abdeljelil).

In goal, it was Cozzella, number 3 last season, who had logically been chosen, Dias not being fully operational yet. Finally, the crocodile team was set up in a 4-2-3-1 formation, with the Akkal-Picouleau duo on recovery and Bouaoune positioned in support of the attacker.

Le 11 de départ est celui annoncé dans Midi Libre. Sur le banc : Masse (g.), Paviot, Khalid, El Hamri, Daoudi, Iafrate, Lemaangr et Mexique. Première apparition pour ce dernier qui n’a pas disputé la moindre minute de match durant la préparation. Amara (pied écrasé) préservé. pic.twitter.com/FHqJ9iW6ma

— Midi Libre Sports (@MidiLibreSports) August 9, 2024

Intentions, not finishing

At the break, Nîmes logically led 2-0. Even if they were a little hungry after ten interesting but not sharp first ten minutes, the Crocos largely dominated the first act. And they created the best chances.

The strikes of Marcel (2nd) and Bouaoune (8th) were initially blocked and Bouaoune's lob attempt, in an off-center position, on the right side, did not find the target (11th). An attempt by Picouleau was deflected by a Cannes player (20th), Beneddine's long shot did not find the target (23rd) and Bouaoune's recovery, on a ball cleared by the Cannes defense, flew close to the post (29th). ).

The intentions were there, like this nice collective movement initiated by Diouf, who shifted Sbaï into the right corridor, and continued by Marcel who infiltrated the surface and crossed for Camara, who was hindered to take over (27th).

The technical sheet

NÎMES (N) – CANNES (N2): 2-0.

Stade des Antonins.

Referee: M. Robin Chapapria.

Half-time: 2-0.

Goals for Nîmes : Abdeljelil (32nd), Camara (34th).

NÎMES : Cozzella – Sbaï (Iafrate, 87th), Diouf, Mendy (cap.) (Paviot, 90th + 1), Beneddine – Akkal, Picouleau – Marcel (El Hamri, 51st), Bouaoune (Lemaangr, 84th), Camara – Abdeljelil (Daoudi, 84th).

Two goals in quick succession

There were intentions, not the finishing. By dint of insisting, Adil Hermach's men, who worked defensively as soon as they lost the ball, ended up finding the fault. Abdeljelil concluded another beautiful collective move: Beneddine combined on the left side with Camara who crossed for Bouaoune; the latter's shot was sent back by the post; the ball came back to the new crocodile center forward (1-0, 32nd).

We resumed almost the same two minutes later and we started again: on the cross from Beneddine, Abdeljelil did not manage to conclude but Camara did (2-0, 34th).

2-0 at the break, it couldn't be more logical. Cozzella had had almost no intervention to make. The only scare: a cross from Vinci which crossed the entire surface without finding a taker (10th).

Complicated restart for the Crocodiles

The restart was complicated for the Crocodiles. “Not enough availability”, Hermach regretted at the edge of the pitch. Cannes were pressing and Cozzella was on the verge of making a mistake in front of Chambon (54th). He made up for it by deflecting a shot from Goncalves (55th).

The Nîmes players had no answer. Facing an opponent who had made a lot of changes and therefore had more physical freshness, they were no longer able to keep the ball and get past the centre circle. Actions? None! And Marcel's exit (intercostal pain) didn't help matters. There was no longer any link between the midfield and the attack, as in the first half.

Cozzella saved by his post

Cannes now monopolized the ball and camped in front of the Nîmes surface. Nîmes, who lost Mendy (cramps) in the final moments, resisted as a team. “We were in the surpassing of ourselves”, appreciated Hermach afterwards. The Crocodiles did not give in because Cozzella intervened on shots from Abass (81st) and Fisher (86th). He was also saved by his uprights on a cross-shot from Fisher which crashed on the opposite edge (83rd).