Nîmes Olympique: it's assured, but still not reassuring

Sur une pelouse difficile pour la pratique du beau jeu, Vincent Marcel a quand même su régaler sur certaines séquences. MIDI LIBRE – SYLVIE CAMBON

En battant Châteauroux (1-0), vendredi 23 août aux Antonins, Nîmes a fait l’essentiel. Même si les Crocos n’ont pas de marge sur 90 minutes.

If we're not going to get up at night to watch the best moves of this Nîmes – Châteauroux, ''real'' National match won by a narrow margin (1-0) by the Crocodiles, Friday night in the Gard, ''frankly, if I get victories like that every day, I'll take'', observes Vincent Marcel.

The 27-year-old Nîmes midfielder, a left-handed aesthete of the beautiful game, sometimes doesn't care about the manner. ''Even if it's not our game, I don't care at all. The collective takes precedence over the individual'', continues the man whose equalizing goal in Amsterdam, against Ajax, one evening in August 2017, sent OGC Nice to the qualifying round of the Champions League.

Vincent Marcel : ''If I have to play 32 matches like that, I'll play 32 matches like that, with victory at the end''

At Antonins, against Berrichonne, it wasn't the same music. That said, for two years now, the native of Basse-Terre (Guadeloupe) has gotten used to the jousts of the division : ''For my second season in National, I got a bit used to this kind of match. If I have to play 32 matches like that, I'll play 32 matches like that, with victory at the end. That's what matters most.''
In the standings, the Crocos have 3 points, positioned in 9th place, even if everything remains anecdotal after only two days.
On the other hand, what has already been more telling, during 60’, facing this rather limited Berrichonne team, is the way in which the Nîmes coach Adil Hermach wants to develop his team: ''I try to take my team somewhere. The process is more or less long but, in any case, we could see that we were trying to play, that we were also getting some very clear chances.''

Bouaoune's crazy week

Nîmes, like its midfielder Issam Bouaoune, was good, even very good in certain sequences, for an hour, against the Castelroussins. ''I often tend, as the coach says, to want to come on the ball side, so I tire myself out making runs for nothing and, at the end of the match, it shows a little (replaced in the 83rd by El Hamri), notes Bouaoune, who arrives from… N3 (Montlouis). Otherwise, I play as I know how and the goal is to continue the week.''
A perfect week for the player trained at Valenciennes, a club he will return to, Friday in the North, with his neo-pro status, at 21 years old: ''I signed my contract (3 years) Thursday, I am super happy, happy. In addition, it preceded the next day's match, where I made the decisive pass that led to the goal (Abdeljelil, 16th), where we won.''

As conquerors in Valenciennes

To win, again and again. ''Against Châteauroux, we were able to show that when you win 1-0, you try to win 1-0 and not 2-1 or 3-1, Marcel points out. We were solid defensively. We have to get used to it, we worked for this kind of situation because we know the championship. It's a good victory that will do us good for our mental strength.''
A mental strength that will be put to the test again at the relegated L2 team, Valenciennes, for NO's first away game. ''We're going to approach this trip like we've approached all matches since the preparation, with a conquering mindset and by offering play, warns captain Formose Mendy. And if we can get a positive result, we won't hold back.''

The U17 Nationals open their season at La Bastide against OGC Nice

U17 NATIONALS – At the start of the season, the NO U17 Nationals always start with a tough match. After hosting Olympique Lyonnais (0-1) a year ago at La Bastide, Salim Fiorentino's men are starting their exercise this time, at 3pm at La Bastide), with a visit from OGC Nice. ''We worked hard during the preparation, notes the coach. We'll see because the reality of preparation is not that of the championship.''

Unlike last season, which they started with six… losses, the Crocodiles have every interest in quickly getting up to speed. ''This season, I think I have a team with more control, notes Fiorentino. Nice is a playful team, we will have to be as good as them in using the ball, something that could be one of our strong points this season.''

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