In their first season back in Ligue 1 since 2005, Bastia defied the odds by avoiding immediate relegation back to France’s second tier. In fact, they finished the campaign nine points clear of the drop zone in a comfortable 12th place and never once found themselves in the bottom three, only coming close in November when they sat 17th after a 3-0 defeat at Brest. Frederic Hantz’s side even overcame a stadium ban that prevented their fans from watching the side play for four home matches as a result of fan trouble in the Corsican derby, and then at home to Marseille, making the feat even more impressive for a newly-promoted side.
The fans’ misbehaviour should not spoil what has been a superb season for the Turchini and Corsican football. With Ajaccio also staying up, but needing until the penultimate day of the campaign to secure their top-flight status, Bastia are kings of ‘the Island’ for the summer at least. Fabrizio Ravanelli and his side from the south of the island may challenge that next year, but at the start of last term the northern-based side were expected to struggle more than their bitter rivals.
That wasn’t the case and although Hantz’s men suffered some heavy defeats along the way, notably 4-0 losses at home to Paris Saint-Germain and away at Montpellier as well as going down 5-2 in Lyon, Bastia were tricky opponents to face, particularly in Corsica. However, their struggles at home when deprived of support meant that a superb run of form stemming from mid-March and into April, including a 12-goal spree over three matches and a home victory over neighbours Ajaccio, was the key moment of their season.
A 4-1 home win over then-title-challengers Lyon in March was the boost in confidence that the side needed after a difficult start to 2013. After that result they also smashed four goals past their next two opponents, Valenciennes and Brest (who beat them 3-0 in November). Those three results alone avoided a frantic end of season scramble for points and all but secured Bastia’s Ligue 1 status ahead of time.
Key to this run of good form was an improvement in defence, despite still finishing the season with the league’s worse goals against record. Hantz’s side shipped 66 goals over the course of the campaign, 41 of which were conceded in the first half of the season. The arrival of Mickael Landreau from Lille helped shore up a porous defensive unit in the second part of the year, but the Turchini’s key man was undoubtedly Anthony Modeste.
Loaned to the Corsican side after failing to impress Bordeaux coach Francis Gillot at either the Stade Chaban-Delmas or on loan at Blackburn Rovers the previous season, the 25-year-old hit 15 league goals and added a further three assists, firing his new side to safety. Whether Bastia would have survived or not without him is another question, and one that will likely be answered next season if he does not return to Corsica, but Modeste’s goals were invaluable to the team’s cause netting a massive 30% of their 50-goal total.
Overall, 12th place is a fantastic achievement for the side who would no doubt have settled for simply avoiding relegation at the start of the year. However, boasting the league’s worst defensive record and the most ill-disciplined squad is a warning sign to Hantz and his players ahead of next season that repeating the feat may not be an easy task.
With Ravanelli sure to bring some much-needed discipline to Bastia’s neighbours Ajaccio in the south, Hantz will need to do the same in the north. He can perhaps feel a little aggrieved at not having been considered for some of the bigger coaching posts that were available towards the end of the season, having performed a minor miracle at the Furiani.
FINAL POSITION: 12th
Review by @Jon_LeGossip