The world (of football) is divided into two categories. On the one hand, the greedy ones, those who like tinsel, swaying dribbles, acrobatic scissors, skylight strikes. And then on the other hand, gourmets, who appreciate hard work, who prefer a precise pass freeing up space, short but well felt, or a clean and clean tackle at a small bridge. DFCO midfielder Jessy Pi, who arrived free in the summer of 2021 at the end of his tenure in Caen, is part of the second category. Not the most flamboyant, not the most prominent either, but perhaps one of the most important elements of Patrice Garande’s system. Focus on the contribution of n ° 26, on the eve of the trip of the “Reds” to Grenoble, Saturday 23 October 2021, for the 13th day of Ligue 2.
3rd most used skater
Behind the goalkeeper, Baptiste Reynet, the only Dijonnais to have played all of the games since the start of the season, we find defenders Daniel Congré and Senou Coulibaly … and Jessy Pi. The midfielder has played 10 games, including nine as a starter, for 756 minutes played – despite a sprain who kept him away from the field for three weeks.
Garande: “I ask him to be as simple as possible”
Ten games played and one assist, issued during the last meeting against Amiens. If we rewind a little more, we realize that on the goal of the Romanian CR7 of DFCO, Alex Dobre, it is Pi who tackles at the start of the action, before being on the pass. “When he plays on his qualities, our team level up. The action of the goal, that he goes to the duel, that he recovers the ball and that immediately, head up, his first idea is to play towards the ‘before, that’s what I ask him, sums up his trainer, Patrice Garande. I ask him to be as simple as possible. He has to do all the control-pass, control-pass, control-pass games, with 95% of his passes forward. All I ask of him is that, the simpler, the better “.
Beyond its offensive contribution – and its usefulness in measuring the perimeter of a circle – Jessy Pi must also be formidable and intractable in the defensive aspect, hyper-important for this sentry post. “In football you can’t just have artists or people attacking, Garande explains. When you don’t have the ball, there are people who have more characteristics than others for that, it is part of his game “.
“I’m not someone who looks at the stats”
When we remind him that against Amiens, he is at the start and near the conclusion of the action, the person seems to discover it. “I’m lucky to have made this decisive pass but it’s a plus, I’m not someone who looks at the stats”, he said, surprised. For his role, he is well aware of what his trainer expects of him : “you have to be overworked, I have to collect balls to organize the game. I am here to give everything on the field and not regret anything”. Generosity and initiative, it will take some to beat the GF38 on Saturday, a mid-table team which is doing better after a delicate start to the season, and which remains on four games without defeat.