Christophe Galtier. Federico Pestellini / PANORAMIC
The Paris SG coach was present at a press conference this Friday, before the match against OGC Nice, this Saturday evening (9:00 p.m.).
Preparation for the match against OGC Nice after the defeat against OL
“We have prepared well for this trip. Obviously, after the defeat against Lyon (0-1), I spoke with the players. I asked them to have more investment, to have more personality and to be more respectful of the instructions and the game plan. Because we failed in terms of organization and commitment. It was insufficient and I told them.
On his speech to the players
“It was not a dialogue, but a speech, an update. I then met a few players one-on-one to clarify things, my thoughts. Were there any exchanges between the players afterwards? I do not know. But on the other hand, everyone trained well during the week.
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The strengths of OGC Nice
“It’s a team that had a lot of new players at the start of the season. It took some time for them to adapt. She is very compact, she defends very seriously. And offensively, she has great qualities. Terem Moffi arrived this winter, Nicolas Pépé is back in shape. She has a good offensive line.
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On the next two decisive matches (against OGC Nice and RC Lens)
“These are important matches, especially the Nice one. They are in great shape. It is the last French club still in contention in a European Cup. They have a lot of certainties, of confidence. It is a difficult team to maneuver. Before thinking of Lens, there is Nice. We are aware that we must do more. We have to find a more coherent game, show more personality. We must have pride. We must not act, but react. And have a total investment.”
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The words of Nasser Al-Khelaïfi who was present at the training center
“The president came to see us. He spoke in the locker room. And what is said in the locker room stays in the locker room.
If he’s under pressure with the bad results
“It’s not a question of pressure but of analyzing the moment t. Do I feel legitimate (to continue coaching Paris SG, editor’s note)? Yes. We must get out of this spiral and seek victories. What is at stake is Paris SG’s eleventh French championship title. We are six points ahead. What do we do with it? Do we let go or do we react immediately?
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On the “incident” between Kylian Mbappé and Paris SG
“It is very difficult for me to express myself. It’s about Kylian and the club. He was in good shape to train this morning, as usual. He had to cut the session short due to discomfort, but his presence for the match against Nice is not compromised. There was a discussion between management and Kylian and the misunderstanding is cleared up.
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The levers to use to straighten the bar
“I have my share of responsibilities, everyone has one: the coach, the staff and the players. We are all aware of that. Do we continue like this? Or do we react? It is the questioning. The presence of the president (Nasser Al-Khelaïfi, editor’s note) this Friday morning at the training center and the fact that he spoke, it shows that we cannot continue like this. His speech was clear, precise, and was for everyone, including me. […] You see the list of absentees. There is little competition. You cannot tell a player that if he continues like this, he will leave the team. But we have a few levers that we can use to improve certain sectors. We conceded way too many goals. Defensively and on the ability to defend as a block, we are very average. And it is also difficult to create chances. We all need to do more. Our game must become more attractive again and project itself more quickly, more often.
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How does he handle the pressure?
“You have to stay focused on the job, have a fair analysis of things. We have to work, look for solutions. Getting my players to react. Nor should responsibility be given to one sector or another. We are all responsible.”
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If the Paris SG season ends with the elimination in C1 as indicated by Laurent Blanc
“The times are not the same. As much as there could be relaxation when Laurent Blanc was at the head of the team (between 2013 and 016, editor’s note), but the club then had a lot of points ahead in the league. There, one cannot be so relaxed. We took a blow behind the head with the elimination in the knockout stages of the Champions League. But we have this title of champion of France to seek. We must have a great reaction to the matches that are coming.”