Up until Saturday's kickoff, it looked like a scary week for the Association Sportive Nancy Lorraine, ASNL. The Northeast squad, which has finished in the bottom half of the table 5 out of the last 6 years (marking their promotion back to Ligue 1), had fallen into the relegation battle from the first weeks of this season, alternating positive three-week periods with similar slumps. Saturday prior to this weekend, they took a 2-0 loss against Evian TG, another relegation battler, their third loss in a row. They fell back into the relegation zone, stuck in 18th place (out of 20; bottom three go out).
Nancy's fans had enough. It was bad enough their city fell out of the running to host Euro2016 Championship matches. Now their team was nosediving out of Ligue 1. They had to make their voices heard. So, like any reasonable set of supporters would do, a group of 60 some-odd diehards went to Nancy's practice facilities the next day to complain. A set of 30 of them broke into the locker room and lit a firecracker (the word for firecracker in French: pétard, which means the same thing in English but is never used except in the phrase I'm using as the title). Once the internet collapses and we all return to our pre-Communications Age ways, I expect we'll all express ourselves in similarly eloquent ways, through the development of a firecracker-symbolized language.
Despite the obvious fireworks, this event did not actually lead to any damage. In fact, the supporters and the team held a little meeting after the firecracker incident to clear the air, and everybody agreed they were on the same page, with the same goal: stay up in Ligue 1. All's well that ends well.
Well, except that looming for Nancy as the launching pad for their return to form would be a home match against Olympique Lyon. It's never reassuring for a bottom-half team to realize they have to play a top-5 team when in dire circumstances. It is further complicated when Nancy had a record of zero wins, twelve losses, and one draw against Lyon since returning to Ligue 1 six and a half years ago. And when Lyon themselves were struggling and badly in need of a win to keep their hopes of Champions League qualification for next year alive? And Lyon had just put up 4 goals on Paris St.-Germain and felt they were robbed of a victory in that game? And Nancy had two victories at home all year (out of thirteen)? It did not look good, to say the least.
Fortunately for Nancy, they got a dull-edged version of Lyon. Even though OL featured the same 11-men who had lit up PSG at home a week before, they played against Nancy without a sense of sharpness, without posing danger to the home side. The first half unfolded in a mute manner, with Lyon holding much of the possession and Nancy looking more threatening on the counter. I sensed the constant possibility that Lyon would wake up, get it together, and prove they were a European-caliber team, but except for the occasional sharp free kick (defender Bakary Koné missed a chance to push a free kick ball in from the back post that was Lyon's best chance), they never did it. At halftime, one could see that Lyon was probably the better club, but that Nancy was even odds or better to pull out the win.
And so the underdog's blueprint was fulfilled perfectly. Nancy continued to threaten on the break, Lyon continued to possess. Lyon earned a corner at 65', didn't convert, Nancy went the other way and earned a free kick. Yohan Mollo sent a dangerous ball into the box that was cleared out by Lyon. Mollo took the subsequent corner kick and it found Nancy defender Sebastian Puygrenier's head and from there the back of the net.
If the first goal wasn't necessarily in the run of play, though still deserved, the second one emerged properly. Nancy took their 1-0 lead as a chance to increase the ball pressure they placed on Lyon (though also to milk the clock with injuries more, alas), and their aggressive defense was rewarded. After holding off another Lyon corner, Nancy sprung on the break, midfielder Djamel Bakar got the ball in space on the right wing, cut in, and finished cleanly past Hugo Lloris. 2-0 Nancy, and that was all there was to it.
Unfortunately for Nancy (and in its way, fortunately for Lyon), they picked a rough week to win a game, as underdogs dominated on Saturday. ASNL pulled up to 17th place, earmarked for remaining in Ligue 1, but only due to a goal difference tiebreaker. Of their remaining 12 games, five come in Nancy and seven away. They still have games home against Montpelier, PSG, and 5th-placed St. Etienne, and away to Bordeaux, Lille, and Marseille. Their only advantage facing this sort of schedule is that in the relegation battle, the default is for teams to lose, so any wins Nancy can put in the bank will go a long way. They are on 26 points right now - last year, 46 were needed to stay up, though that mark looks like it'll be more around 42 or so this year.
Nancy has pulled off a surprise or two this year, and the win over Lyon isn't their biggest shocker (that would be the 0-1 win away at PSG in November). This one might be more crucial, though, coming at this late date in the season and with the team needing to build momentum for the final third of the season.
More importantly, it should keep their fans from lighting any more firecrackers in the wrong place. Though at least ASNL know where to look if they need someone to provide a spark.
Other Notes
- Montpelier Herault SC gave back their seat at the head of the table to PSG, drawing away to Dijon while the capital club romped over Ajaccio 4-1. A Montpelier player was quoted a week ago, after Montpelier assumed the top spot, saying that they'd almost rather be behind PSG than have the leaders' bullseye on them. While there's some competitive logic to this, it also can be something of a psychological crutch, and hopefully Montpelier won't continue to hobble on it. Then again, they were missing Ligue 1 goalscoring leader Oliver Giroud (suspended) and another key attacking player in Younes Belhanda (injured), so perhaps they can be excused. With Caen and Nancy the next two weeks, there becomes more urgency for MHSC to pick up six points out of six.
- A blah week for the top half of the table in general it was. Lille blew a 2-0 lead late to gain only a draw, blowing another chance to reinsert themselves into the title race. AS Saint-Etienne lost 0-2 at home, halting their strong run towards the European spots. Toulouse beat Marseille 1-0 in Marseille, making it all the more unlikely that the perennial Champions League entrant will miss out next year. Bordeaux lost 1-2 at home to Nice, another costly chance wasted.
Besides Toulouse, the only team in this group to earn three points was Rennes, whom we focused on last week. In a Breton Derby, SRFC scored twice in the second half to beat fading Lorient. Rennes is now even on points with St. Etienne and Toulouse and ahead of them in 4th on goal differential. They play Toulouse in two weeks at home, with a game against relegation zone Auxerre in between. If Rennes is still in 4th at the end of the month, they could be a threat to Lille, with an easy April schedule to launch from.
- As for Lyon, I'm saving them to maybe write more after their Champions League match this Wednesday. They also host Lille in "le choc de la semaine" (the match of the week) Saturday night. In fact, they've got a hell of a month coming up. Which makes their drab defeat to Nancy all the more disappointing for the team that has been the best in France this millennium. Maybe their fans need to hoist some pétards in the right place, if you know what I'm saying.
(Note: not actually saying Lyon fans should light firecrackers anywhere. I don't want anyone getting hurt.)
Nancy's fans had enough. It was bad enough their city fell out of the running to host Euro2016 Championship matches. Now their team was nosediving out of Ligue 1. They had to make their voices heard. So, like any reasonable set of supporters would do, a group of 60 some-odd diehards went to Nancy's practice facilities the next day to complain. A set of 30 of them broke into the locker room and lit a firecracker (the word for firecracker in French: pétard, which means the same thing in English but is never used except in the phrase I'm using as the title). Once the internet collapses and we all return to our pre-Communications Age ways, I expect we'll all express ourselves in similarly eloquent ways, through the development of a firecracker-symbolized language.
Despite the obvious fireworks, this event did not actually lead to any damage. In fact, the supporters and the team held a little meeting after the firecracker incident to clear the air, and everybody agreed they were on the same page, with the same goal: stay up in Ligue 1. All's well that ends well.
Well, except that looming for Nancy as the launching pad for their return to form would be a home match against Olympique Lyon. It's never reassuring for a bottom-half team to realize they have to play a top-5 team when in dire circumstances. It is further complicated when Nancy had a record of zero wins, twelve losses, and one draw against Lyon since returning to Ligue 1 six and a half years ago. And when Lyon themselves were struggling and badly in need of a win to keep their hopes of Champions League qualification for next year alive? And Lyon had just put up 4 goals on Paris St.-Germain and felt they were robbed of a victory in that game? And Nancy had two victories at home all year (out of thirteen)? It did not look good, to say the least.
 |
| Lyon before the game, the last time they really looked like a threat. |
And so the underdog's blueprint was fulfilled perfectly. Nancy continued to threaten on the break, Lyon continued to possess. Lyon earned a corner at 65', didn't convert, Nancy went the other way and earned a free kick. Yohan Mollo sent a dangerous ball into the box that was cleared out by Lyon. Mollo took the subsequent corner kick and it found Nancy defender Sebastian Puygrenier's head and from there the back of the net.
If the first goal wasn't necessarily in the run of play, though still deserved, the second one emerged properly. Nancy took their 1-0 lead as a chance to increase the ball pressure they placed on Lyon (though also to milk the clock with injuries more, alas), and their aggressive defense was rewarded. After holding off another Lyon corner, Nancy sprung on the break, midfielder Djamel Bakar got the ball in space on the right wing, cut in, and finished cleanly past Hugo Lloris. 2-0 Nancy, and that was all there was to it.
Unfortunately for Nancy (and in its way, fortunately for Lyon), they picked a rough week to win a game, as underdogs dominated on Saturday. ASNL pulled up to 17th place, earmarked for remaining in Ligue 1, but only due to a goal difference tiebreaker. Of their remaining 12 games, five come in Nancy and seven away. They still have games home against Montpelier, PSG, and 5th-placed St. Etienne, and away to Bordeaux, Lille, and Marseille. Their only advantage facing this sort of schedule is that in the relegation battle, the default is for teams to lose, so any wins Nancy can put in the bank will go a long way. They are on 26 points right now - last year, 46 were needed to stay up, though that mark looks like it'll be more around 42 or so this year.
Nancy has pulled off a surprise or two this year, and the win over Lyon isn't their biggest shocker (that would be the 0-1 win away at PSG in November). This one might be more crucial, though, coming at this late date in the season and with the team needing to build momentum for the final third of the season.
More importantly, it should keep their fans from lighting any more firecrackers in the wrong place. Though at least ASNL know where to look if they need someone to provide a spark.
Other Notes
- Montpelier Herault SC gave back their seat at the head of the table to PSG, drawing away to Dijon while the capital club romped over Ajaccio 4-1. A Montpelier player was quoted a week ago, after Montpelier assumed the top spot, saying that they'd almost rather be behind PSG than have the leaders' bullseye on them. While there's some competitive logic to this, it also can be something of a psychological crutch, and hopefully Montpelier won't continue to hobble on it. Then again, they were missing Ligue 1 goalscoring leader Oliver Giroud (suspended) and another key attacking player in Younes Belhanda (injured), so perhaps they can be excused. With Caen and Nancy the next two weeks, there becomes more urgency for MHSC to pick up six points out of six.
- A blah week for the top half of the table in general it was. Lille blew a 2-0 lead late to gain only a draw, blowing another chance to reinsert themselves into the title race. AS Saint-Etienne lost 0-2 at home, halting their strong run towards the European spots. Toulouse beat Marseille 1-0 in Marseille, making it all the more unlikely that the perennial Champions League entrant will miss out next year. Bordeaux lost 1-2 at home to Nice, another costly chance wasted.
Besides Toulouse, the only team in this group to earn three points was Rennes, whom we focused on last week. In a Breton Derby, SRFC scored twice in the second half to beat fading Lorient. Rennes is now even on points with St. Etienne and Toulouse and ahead of them in 4th on goal differential. They play Toulouse in two weeks at home, with a game against relegation zone Auxerre in between. If Rennes is still in 4th at the end of the month, they could be a threat to Lille, with an easy April schedule to launch from.
- As for Lyon, I'm saving them to maybe write more after their Champions League match this Wednesday. They also host Lille in "le choc de la semaine" (the match of the week) Saturday night. In fact, they've got a hell of a month coming up. Which makes their drab defeat to Nancy all the more disappointing for the team that has been the best in France this millennium. Maybe their fans need to hoist some pétards in the right place, if you know what I'm saying.
(Note: not actually saying Lyon fans should light firecrackers anywhere. I don't want anyone getting hurt.)
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