There are match scenarios that leave traces. The one between Stade de Reims and Clermont could well be one of them. And for good reason. After 45 generally positive minutes, the Rémois completely turned off the light then, lost after the exclusion of one of their own. Something to wonder about the mental strength of a young and still inexperienced team. The intentions were nevertheless promising. From the first seconds, Mitchell Van Bergen found depth on the right side and crossed instantly, without success. Inclinations however spoiled by a technical waste which offered an unexciting spectacle. The light finally came from a man. Already scorer in Marseille, Folarin Balogun repeatedly created danger. On one of his percussions in the area, the young English striker is held back by the shirt. Referee Johan Hamel logically indicates the penalty spot. An offering transformed by the young Kamory Doumbia.
Ahead of the score, the Rémois continue their efforts with more confidence. Balogun, again, is in all the right moves. Inspired, he closes for Doumbia whose recovery is blocked by the hand of Yihan Magnin in the area. This time, Balogun takes care of the execution of the penalty to give the Rémois a two-goal lead at the break. And the gap could have been wider if the Clermont goalkeeper hadn’t made a few decisive saves.
You miss someone and everything is out of order
In a beautiful atmosphere in Delaune, the Rémois will however be scuttled in an inexplicable way. It’s first Emmanuel Agbadou, who guilty of a foul in the center circle as the last defender, saw red. At ten against eleven, the Rémois undergo, panic and multiply the errors. Mitchel Van Bergen, in particular, causes a penalty because of an unfortunate but real hand in the area (2-1). From then on, the Reims team was dark and taking on water from all sides. Clermont did not ask for so much. With opportunism, the Auvergne would then exploit all the spaces left by the disillusioned Reims and seeming to decline mentally. The Clermont equalizer, from a set piece, is symptomatic of the local defensive largesse. Clermont would then have a field day to score two additional goals. A nightmarish second half for a Stade de Reims without spring or tactics or mentality, and which offers real questions for the future. With eight goals conceded in two games, Reims’ debut this season has been a failure. We shouldn’t be too late in such a special season, otherwise we’ll have a difficult season. First response expected in Strasbourg next Sunday.
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