After a week of international break punctuated by a friendly victory (3-2) against Bordeaux and during which eight Clermontois were in selection, Clermont Foot 63 returns to Ligue 1 Uber Eats on the occasion of this trip to Ajaccio (Sunday, 3 p.m.). The opportunity for Pascal Gastien’s men to relaunch a dynamic in the championship.
Frustrated by their defeat against Troyes (3-1) in the 8e day, the Clermontois are keen to show another face on the lawn of François Coty. Faced with an Ajaccian team which is returning to Ligue 1 Uber Eats this season, Mory Diaw and his teammates will have to close ranks to take points on the Island of Beauty.
Because, if the two clubs will meet for the first time in their history at this level, Clermont Foot 63 has won only one of its last eight matches against Ajaccio in Ligue 2 BKT (3 losses, 4 draws) . And even if until then the Auvergnats have been rather efficient against the promoted with three victories (against Troyes twice last year and against Toulouse recently) in as many confrontations, this match in Corsica promises to be complicated.
“The defeat against Troyes was a big disappointmentrembobine Pascal Gastien. We know it’s going to be a complicated match in Ajaccio. They lost games, but it was always close. They are a good team who may not have managed to take more points due to lack of experience from Ligue 1 Uber Eats. But they still have experienced players like Hamouma, Mangani or Touzghar. They are a ready, solid, dangerous and well-balanced team. And in which everyone defends. We will have to be a little more rigorous than against Troyes. »
Especially since before this international break, the ACA won its first victory of the season on the lawn of Brest (1-0) and will now want to continue with a success at home behind which it has been chasing since the start of the championship.
“We had a very good start against Troyes, now it’s up to us to extend that to 90 minuteshammers the Clermont technician. I feel like we are progressing in the game, but we cannot repeat the same mistakes otherwise we will be punished again. With Ajaccio we were the two doomed from the start of the season for everyone. It is up to us to be vigilant. This match is important for the future against a direct competitor. »
A vision of things shared by Maximiliano Caufriez. “Faced with Troyes we fell into a kind of ease, regrets the central defender. We will have to try to get the three points in Ajaccio and above all not take this match lightly. We will have to be vigilant and try to get them from the start of the match. A bit like we did against Troyes, but this time we will have to hold on. We have a team that has experience and we will have to be patient against Ajaccio. It’s a very complicated match that awaits us. »
For this trip to Corsica, Clermont Foot 63 will have to do without Jérémie Bela and Jim Allevinah, both injured before the international break and too short to hope to play on Sunday. Back in collective training, Mehdi Zeffane joins the group for the first time this season in Ligue 1 Uber Eats.