France Blue: The SM Caen begins a new season with a new squad. There are always a lot of expectations from the public. Where is the Stade Malherbe de Caen at the start of this fourth consecutive season in Ligue 2?
Olivier Pickeu: I consider that there is important work that has been done by Yohan Eudeline (the sports director) and the recruitment unit to allow Stéphane Moulin to have a workforce ready, as soon as training resumes.
I think it’s something very new – at least since my arrival – with nine new players, the integration of our young people from training and authors of a remarkable course in Gambardella last year and a coach and a staff happy with the work he is doing with his group.
To do better than what we have done, to continue our progress in any case. That’s what I asked the staff and that’s what I asked the players
Does this allow us today to position ourselves very clearly regarding our ambitions? It’s hard to tell you that. What is certain is that I feel a lot of enthusiasm, work, consistency in this group and a great desire, of course, to do battle in this championship which will obviously be difficult because there are only there are only two clubs going up and four going down. So we have to be humble, of course. This will be the watchword of our project, but also show a lot of ambition. This seems completely essential to me in relation to what we have started with the help of shareholders since my arrival. So, to do better than what we have done, to continue our progress in any case. That’s what I asked the staff and that’s what I asked the players, to continue to allow the club to evolve in a very positive way in all its lines.
Like every season, the transfer window will end quite late after the start of the championship. Is the squad complete? Are you still looking for a last recruit or do you anticipate potential departures?
We still have more than a month left for the end of the transfer window. At the end of the transfer window, it will be easier for the club, for me and for Stéphane Moulin, to be able to speak clearly about his group. Today, there are still possible moves. As you know, we are still in discussion around Jessy Deminguet and there are important players in our project who are called upon within the team. So until the closure is achieved, we will have to remain attentive in both directions and ensure that our players feel the best in the world and are not attracted by other proposals. Regarding arrivals, there will be none if there are no departures. So obviously I ask Yohan and the cell to continue looking for plans B, C, D if by chance important players in our project have to leave. But for now, the idea is to keep our best players and prepare for the season like that.
Regarding arrivals, there will be none if there are no departures
Are you financially satisfied precisely with the movements of players. Are you in the nails in relation to the financial income linked to the transfers that you were expecting?
There was the transfer of Johann Lepenant, which was rather consistent in terms of transfers – even if I remind you that we would have liked to keep Jo Lepenant with us in the project. I think he was in the middle of a progression phase. That’s not what happened. Today, there has been a significant comeback in this context. The club is still in a deficit situation in terms of financial project. So, it’s up to me to continue to settle all that by making sure to be very firm about the proposals that are put on possible players and at the same time to stay the course and on our sporting project and on our economic project.
Is the transfer of Johann Lepenant enough to make up the deficit? I’m not answering you yet
Is the transfer of Jo Lepenant enough to fill the gap? I won’t answer you yet but obviously that puts us in another position. What I feel above all is that the shareholders are very solid in this transfer window period and allow me to be able to lead this always complex transfer period in the best possible way. Jessy Deminguet is the hottest topic. We have an interesting proposal from a club that we considered insufficient for him to leave. We obviously remain completely open to discussion. And Jessy knows about it. At the moment it is working. He is preparing for the best to have a good season next season. I sincerely hope he stays with us. Now, if a Ligue 1 club is able to pay compensation corresponding to its quality, then we will still lose an important player as part of our project. We have a Bilal Brahimi who also came in this direction to be able to compensate for the possible departure of Deminguet. So we are not in a situation of discomfort from a sporting point of view, even if I would prefer Jessy to be with us for the next season.
I indicated that the proposal (from the TFC for Deminguet) that I had received did not correspond to the expectations of the club. This does not mean that we have stopped the negotiations, at least on our side
Which club made you an attractive offer?
It is Toulouse FC with whom I have excellent relations. I have excellent relations with Damien Comolli the president of the club and you know my relationship with Philippe Montanier. This is obviously done in a very professional and very friendly way. Now, quite simply, I indicated that the proposal I had received did not correspond to the expectation of the club. This does not mean that we have stopped the negotiations, at least on our side. Now there are other opportunities for Jessy. It is also up to him to position himself within the framework of his next project. What is important is that he is working to prepare for the next season as well as possible. And we will see about the final decision concerning him.
During the transfer window and while his future is being discussed, does he remain available to the group? Can it play with SMC?
We had a discussion with Pierre-Antoine Capton, Stéphane (Moulin), Yohan (Eudeline) and all the people concerned about the sporting future of our project. We thought that, Jessy being on the start, it was complex to integrate him with so many newcomers. This creates a mess from a group perspective. But I have complete confidence in Jessy. We thought that the start would be made further upstream of this transfer window. This is not the case so he is currently working with the reserve team with Nicolas Seube and the athletic staff. At any time, Stéphane Moulin can reinstate him in the group. But today, this is not Stéphane’s request. But I will be attentive and obviously, I would accept if by chance it should be the request. We have a little over a month left to close this transfer window and we will see the decision that will be made. This is something that does not worry me at all. Obviously, for Jessy, this is certainly a new situation for him and which must be a little harder to manage than us at the moment. What I would like is for him to stay with us, train with the group and be ready for the first day of the championship. We are not in this context for the moment, but that does not prevent everything from going well.
When you arrived at the end of August 2020, few players were transferable. There was little interest in the weed workforce. Today, we see the interest of different clubs for Jessy Deminguet, Ali Abdi, Ibrahim Cissé or Norman Bassette. Does this show the appreciation and the work that has been done by the club?
It’s true that, when we started the adventure with Stéphane Moulin and the staff last year, I knew that I had a staff capable of being able to allow these players to cross levels. We had quality players, but we still had to put them in the best working conditions and prospects. And Stéphane is a specialist in being able to value and advance the players.
You mentioned these players but the return of Hugo Vandermersch to the fore, the return of Yohann Court after his injury, Alex Mendy who scored sixteen goals for the first time in his career. It’s not just the valuation of Jo Lepenant on whom we have discussed a lot, or Ali Abdi, who was voted best left side in the championship and who will be at the World Cup. It is a source of pride for the club, these players who arrived like that in our project and who today, thanks to the work, on a daily basis of all the staff and players, allow us to value the work. Of course, it’s not just that. You were talking about Norman Bassette. The remarkable career in the Coupe Gambardella last year has put the work of the Stade Malherbe de Caen into perspective for the next few years and to highlight the work that was done. It fills me with joy and obviously it corresponds to the work I want to do for the future. This is another problem to solve: how to keep our players when they are called upon. And today, under these conditions, it is something that I had imagined and on which we must now prepare.