“My person doesn’t matter“. Throughout his first press conference since he was appointed to act as Claude Puel, Julien Sablé has strived to put AS Saint-Étienne above everything and especially himself. But he also gave some keys to his vision of the situation with concrete decision making since Loïc Perrin asked him to take the team on Tuesday.
The club above everything
Julien Sablé considers himself as “a child of Sainté“and as such feels a lot more duties than rights towards ASSE:”When Loïc (Perrin) offered to take the team, I didn’t ask myself any questions. I have been here for 18 years. We are in great danger. Much more than three and a half years ago when I was already facing you. I am a supporter of this club, a former player. This situation hurts me and I am a soldier so we go there and we try to be as competent and efficient as possible.“.
The change of captaincy, his first decision
Asked to provide training from Tuesday, Julien Sablé was very quickly informed that he should also probably coach the team for its trip to Reims this Saturday (21 hours). The managers of Saint-Etienne are still looking for a replacing Claude Puel. This transitional situation (for the moment) did not prevent him from making an important first decision. He entrusted the captain brewer to Wahbi Khazri in place of Mahdi Camara.
“It costs me a lot for Mahdi made a point of clarifying immediately Julien Sablé. It’s not a choice against Mahdi, it’s for Mahdi. I want him to refocus on his performance because I would need a great Mahdi Camara. I believe in him enormously. Wahbi is a great player. He is captain of Tunisia. It’s for the group“.
The “five major”: the power to the players?
Mahdi Camara, removed from the captaincy, is not on the other hand from the new group of wise men set up by Julien Sablé. Or “five majors” as the former Greens midfielder calls him. A group which consists of Romain Hamouma, Wahbi Khazri, Ryad Boudebouz, Timothée Kolodziejczak and therefore Mahdi Camara. “I have the decision on the final composition but I want to co-build with them and that’s what we did throughout the week explains Julien Sablé. They didn’t wait for me to take matters into their own hands. I believe in horizontal management with, of course, leaders. It is my background and my experience that brings me to this. I want to be part of it. I want to coach as I would have liked to be coached“. A break with his predecessor?”Not at all answers Julien Sablé, Claude met the players regularly“.
Claude Puel: respect and markdown
The name of Claude Puel obviously came up several times during this first big oral. As expected Julien Sablé, of whom he was the deputy throughout his term of office, was laudatory speaking of “hard time for him (Claude) and a “great professional who gave a lot“. But Julien Sablé also took care to stand out from its predecessor recalling that: “for three and a half years (he) had not known that Claude. I knew Jean-Louis (Gasset). I had my first interim. I graduated now. Much to my father’s pride. I acted with them (Puel and Gasset) as the assistant I would like to have. That is to say with loyalty, fidelity and dedication. Then I have my ideas. I am not a copy paste“.
Just a temp?
But will Julien Sablé have time to impose his ideas? The club continues to actively seek a successor to Claude Puel. If he is sure to be on the bench in Reims this Saturday, the continuation is inscribed in dotted lines. “Many people told me not to go he explained. Today I feel legitimate in this place. My future will be to be a number one coach and that’s what I built myself for. That’s why I stayed with Jean-Louis (Gasset) rather than going back to training “.
“Beyond Reims, I don’t ask myself the question promises the native of Marseille. I don’t even want to tell myself what the future is going to be. I am the head in the handlebars. I want to go and win in Reims but I don’t make it a personal case“.