Appointed coach of the Racing Club de Lens this summer, Pierre Sage is enjoying happy days in the North of France. Fourth in Ligue 1, joint-best defense in the championship with seven goals conceded in eight games, the Lensois are offering a coherent game plan at the start of the season.
Propelled to the head of OL only two years ago, on November 30, 2023 after the departure of Fabio Grosso, the Jura native very quickly adapted to the expectations of the high level, until reaching the final of the Coupe de France in 2024.
An express adaptation on the part of the tactician who, in an interview given to Media Squaresaid he was greatly inspired by his counterpart Roberto De Zerbi. “I went to see a Rome-Sassuolo in 2016 or 2017, precisely to see De Zerbi’s Sassuolo. So you can imagine that the coach and his way of playing attract me a lot. » Admiring his work, Pierre Sage was nevertheless very disappointed by the attitude of the Olympian coach, whom he will meet again this Saturday (9:05 p.m.) for the 9th day of Ligue 1.
“I was waiting for him to have consideration for me”
He continues: “And afterwards, when we played against them
(OL-OM September 22, 2024, editor’s note)when we lost 2-3 while being in numerical superiority, I found myself less in what he gave off, in the relationship with the other coach. » An opinion biased by his admiration for De Zerbi, but confirmed by his other experiences with different coaches. “So maybe I looked at him too much with the eyes of someone who had gone to see him play in a match. But when I met Mourinho, when I met Arteta in other matches, there I had the person I had seen. »
If a certain regret is felt through his words, Pierre Sage still wanted to play down the situation. It must be said that it's not really his style to provoke his opponents. “It’s not that it didn’t go well, it’s that it didn’t go at all. Maybe I was waiting for him to have some consideration for me, but maybe he didn't even know the name of the coach opposite. This is not serious in itself. The next day it was daylight. »
