Benfica in the Champions League qualification? A nightmarish draw for many. A European monster, accustomed to continental jousts, facing an OGC Nice which is struggling to exist on the European scene. On paper, the balance of power seems unbalanced. We can imagine a prudent coach, measured, playing the card of the “Petit Poucet”. But Franck Haise is not from this school. In a long interview at The teamhe sent a clear message: fear has no place in Nice.
Haise shakes Nice and defies the fatalists
This is the sentence that sums up the state of mind of the Nice coach. The European past of the club? He doesn't care. Benfica's favorite status? He recognizes it, but refuses to submit to it.
“Normally, we do not exist”, he concedes, before adding: “But it is not because one should not exist that we will not exist. »» It is a hatch in the text. A direct discourse, without tongue in wood, which aims to break the psychological barriers which have so often slowed down the club.
He brows the back of the hand “Good thinkers”
and the clichés of football, like that of the “Difficult second year”. For him, these are only
“Bullshit”. Her sole objective is that her team performed, that she shows that she has the level, regardless of the opponent or the context. He assumes having to
” shake “ his group last season, because
“The level of requirement could fall”. This offensive discourse is the continuity of his method: sting to make react.
A project in the midst of construction sites
This proactive discourse contrasts with the reality of a workforce still under construction. Haise knows, his team is far from ready. With six potential holders absent for injury (Ndayishimiye, Ndombele, Diop …) and a transfer window that still awaits “three players”, the challenge is huge. But then again, he refuses to take shelter behind the excuses. He has “Never had a problem with youth” To fill the holes in defense and trust the game principles worked for a year.
This is all the strength and risk of the Haise project. He asks his players to ignore the prestige of the opponent and the difficulties of the moment to focus on one thing: biting in this opportunity. Because, as he recalls“The Champions League, whether we are 18 or 42, is an opportunity. You have to bite into it. Because it may never come back. »» A message that is addressed as much to the young Juma Bah as to the Dante veteran. Faced with Benfica, Nice will not leave favorite, but with a coach who refuses defeat before even playing, he will leave with a certainty: he will exist.
