At the bottom of the abyss in Ligue 2, Valenciennes enjoyed an enchanted break by eliminating Rouen on Wednesday to reach the semi-finals of the Coupe de France.
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Valenciennes does the splits. In agony in the championship, the Northerners offer themselves a historic epic in the Coupe de France. Last in Ligue 2 and almost condemned to the descent, VA qualified for the semi-finals of the competition for the first time since 1970 by dismissing FC Rouen on its lawn (1-1, 4-2 tab), Wednesday 28 FEBRUARY. In front of their supporters, in open conflict with President Charles Maarek but with unfailing support this evening, the Rouennais cruelly failed on penalties, after beating AS Monaco and Toulouse FC at the end of the same exercise in previous rounds.
Enterprising and dominant in the first half hour, the Valenciennes logically took the advantage thanks to Mathias Oyewusi, who perfectly headed a beautiful cross from Souleymane Basse (26th). The Nigerian striker, who arrived this winter from Bulgaria, scored his first goal in the northern jersey. FC Rouen then gradually regained control of the ball, without managing to create a clear opportunity, while VA retreated to preserve its advantage. The Normans thought the match was lost before obtaining a penalty at the very end of the match, thanks to the opportunism of Sofyane Bouzamoucha and a mistake by Anthony Knockaert following a corner. Damien Loppy transformed in two stages (90th + 1).
In front of the visitors’ stand, filled with more than 700 Valenciennes residents, the VAFC finally won the penalty shootout, thanks to a save by its goalkeeper Jean Louchet, hero of the evening, and an attempt on the crossbar. Valenciennes is the second club to qualify for the semi-finals after Olympique Lyonnais, who eliminated Strasbourg on penalties on Tuesday February 27. In the other quarter-finals, Le Puy hosts Rennes on Thursday, before Nice receives Paris Saint-Germain next week.
