If offensive efficiency is the last stage of the Pau FC rocket to be assembled, in the words of its coach Didier Tholot, it is indeed defensive efficiency that cost Metz points. With only one goal scored in this good Ligue 2 mid-table match, the Palois ran after the score, in vain.
Kouassi alone at fault?
To sum up the Béarnaise defeat to the only technical error of Xavier Kouassi, at the origin of the goal of Amadou Dia Ndiaye (11th), would be too easy. “It’s damaging” concedes Didier Tholot. “Are we going to put all the blame on him? No, it’s collectively. I would never put anyone forward on these faults.”
Unlike Quevilly Rouen, where he had pointed out his captain’s error, the Pau coach chose not to incriminate him. At the exit of the Saint Symphorien locker room, the tone is the same among the players. No one wants to blame “Tonton” Kouassi. “It’s not his fault. If we had scored, we wouldn’t be talking about it” explains a teammate off.
An unrealized domination
After a missed first twenty minutes and a goal conceded, Pau FC gradually took over. “But if our attackers put them in the background, we don’t have the same speech saying ‘we lost because of Kouassi'” release Tholot. With a single shot on target in the second half, the crossbar hit by Diyaeddine Abzi (74th), the Palois showed real deficiencies in the finishing area.
However, the opportunities were many. Strikes from Boli (30th) and Gomis (79th) grazed the Messinian skylights. The offsets found were not materialized. “We don’t frame enough, we don’t score enough.” notes the Pau technician. “We know that the offensive area takes the longest to set up. But at least there is an improvement” he concludes after a qualitatively successful match.
Nisic back eight months later
Despite the defeat, a glimmer appeared. The return of Jovan Nisic five minutes from the end, eight months after his injury to the cruciate ligaments of a knee. “I am happy” admits the Serbian midfielder in very understandable French, even if saddened by the defeat. “Physically and in my head, I’m good. I’m happy because the staff and the club have helped me a lot.”
“I played two or three games in reserve, they didn’t rush me” explains Nisic who hopes to return to top form after the World Cup break. Who notably took advantage of the suspension of Sessi D’Almeida in midfield to scratch a few liberating minutes.