His slight drop in pace over the past month and a half should not erase a remarkable first part of the season. In the top match of this 17th and final day of the first leg of Ligue 2, Red Star had to concede a goalless draw against Reims in a sold-out Bauer stadium.
Despite good intentions against an excellent team, Grégory Poirier’s men seemed to lack a little juice to force the decision. The fault perhaps lies in a profusion of efforts since mid-August. Red Star’s last success in L2 dates back to November 1 against Saint-Étienne (2-1).
The truce therefore comes at just the right time. Failing to have won, the Seine-Saint-Denis club did not lose it and remains well placed at the top of the table by occupying 5th place with a length behind Le Mans (2nd) but with one match less. The one from last week in Bastia stopped at the hour mark following a throw of smoke on the right arm of defender Bradley Danger. The latter played the entire match this Saturday. “Bradley is an experienced player who was able to put that aside,” said Grégory Poirier after the meeting. He worked this week to be ready against Reims. »
Reims misses the match point
After a closed first act with double turns, the two teams let loose in the second half. Kévin Cabral takes advantage of a loss of ball by the former Nantais Nicolas Pallois to appear alone against the Reims goalkeeper Ewen Jaouen but the latter intervenes (52nd). In the following minute, Audonian goalkeeper Gaëtan Poussin recovered from his failed recovery by saving his goal against Nakamura (53rd).
The pace does not slow down. The two teams go from one camp to the other. In a good situation, Audonian playmaker Saïf-Eddine Khaoui sees his attempt go just over (58th). The Audoniens gave up at the end of the match. Reims pushes to try to force the decision. Nakamura has a golden match point but his attempt misses the target (88th).
“We played a very strong team made up of many players configured for L1,” declares Grégory Poirier. This is a good point to take. We must not gentrify, the clock is ticking. We remain solid even if we would have liked to be sharper offensively. I felt my team was a little tired at the end of the match. Counting 29 points with a game in hand at the end of the first leg is just incredible. »
Eliminated from the Coupe de France (in the 8th round in Bisheim), the Red Star will be able to benefit from several days of vacation and perhaps three more points on the clock depending on the decision on Monday, December 22 of the LFP disciplinary committee concerning the match stopped in Bastia. If this were the case, the resumption match on Saturday January 3 against leader Troyes would necessarily take on a different flavor. “A prohibited projectile on a player who could lose his eye is not possible. It’s up to the committee to do its job,” concludes the Audonian coach.
The match sheet
RED STAR – REIMS : 0-0. Spectators: 4660. Referee: Mr. Abed.
Warnings. Red Star : Khaoui (45e + 1) ; Reims : Gueu (44e), Gbane (85e).
Red Star : Poussin – Durivaux, Lemonnier, Danger – Haag – Sylla, R. Hachem (cap.) (Eickmayer, 27th), Khaoui Trani, 76th), Cissé (Huarde, 83rd) – Durand (Ikanga, 76th), Cabral (A. Hachem, 83rd). Enter. : Poirier.
