Ben Yedder’s decisive introduction
“It’s what any manager likes to see whenever he sends a player on during a game. Myron (Boadu) worked really hard here for 10 days during the international break so he deserved to start today. He played well, fought hard and created some chances for himself. His pace caused problems for the Lille defence. He was a threat for us in behind and he fought hard for the team, he tired out the Lille rearguard, which allowed Wissam (Ben Yedder) to make the difference at the end of the game.”
Second-half reaction
“It was so important to score a goal before half-time to stay in the game. I think Alexander Nübel’s save was also really important. It reminded me of last season’s game against PSG, when they were 2-0 ahead going in at the break. I got the reaction I expected from my players in the second half, getting a point which feels more like a victory to me, having been two goals behind. It’s exactly what I wanted to see, that my players fought to the very end to get a result, with desire and energy.”
A poor start
“In the opening 25 minutes, we struggled in our individual battles. We mustn’t forget that we were up against a team who play in Europe and are the current French champions. Lille started really well. They have some really good players who attack very quickly. We watched them play a bit too much. In football, you need to let the opposition know you’re there, that you’re not going to give up. In Ligue 1, when you don’t show that you’re physically up to it, you can’t get a positive result. To impose your football on your opponents, you have to show desire and that’s what we did in the second half.”
Tactics
“In the first half, we only played with one number six because we wanted Aurélien (Tchouaméni) to affect the game higher up the pitch. But it didn’t work well because Lille pushed forward a lot, so we switched to two sixes after 25 minutes. We have to keep working in order to improve. As a coach and considering how the game was going, I’m satisfied with the result tonight. Although we know that we have to offer more, both tonight and in general, fight more than last season. We aren’t outsiders anymore, our goal is to finish the season in the European spots. We’ve lost some ground to the leading teams but I believe in my team and I know we’ll stay in the race.”
Flow of the match
“We weren’t at the level we expect of ourselves in the first 20 minutes but then we reacted well, our disappointment at conceding the second goal galvanised us. We managed to turn things around and Lille were hardly in the game in the second half. We’re frustrated with the draw but pleased with our reaction. I’m sure this match will be important for the rest of the season.”
Frustration despite the comeback
“We’re frustrated as, even with 10 men, we should’ve won the match. We’re really frustrated with the game because we had a lot of chances and it’s a shame we weren’t able to score that third goal. Even though we would’ve preferred a different result, that second half has done us a lot of good. Before an important game on Thursday against Real Sociedad, it gives us a lot of confidence, both physically and mentally.”
Half-time team talk
“The coach told us to get our heads up. We also became aware of things ourselves, he didn’t need to say too much to us. We reacted well and showed a different side of ourselves in the second half.”
Jocelyn Gourvennec
“There are both positives and negatives for us to take from the game, it was an up-and-down performance. In the first half, before conceding, we could have been 3-0 ahead but there we were at 2-1 at half-time. We suffered for 20 minutes after that and then we regained control when it was 11 against 10. Once again, we’ll think of this as a point gained and two lost as, with the way the game was going, we should never have been pegged back. Every match is different; tonight, it was a question of concentration. It’s up to us to be more mature, defend better, be less open and show more guile. I think a lack of clear-headedness is costing us points.”
“I have to take into account that our preparation for the game was chaotic, with some players out injured and others very tired after coming back from international duty. One (Jonathan Bamba) was ruled out just two days before the game. Burak (Yilmaz) came back exhausted. Three others (Angel Gomes, Timothy Weah and Jonathan David) got back yesterday at 6pm. I don’t need to spell it out for you, they played without having trained. We took some risks and crossed our fingers that they wouldn’t get injured, that’s the reality but we had no other choice. Reinildo (Mandava) was ill this afternoon and couldn’t play. So in spite of all that, we showed up well. But it wasn’t enough to win.”
“Our players are experienced, both at club and international level, so I want us to use that maturity to defend leads with everything that we’ve got. We need to think clearly, stay cool and let go of our frustration.”
Isaac Lihadji
“We’re really disappointed to have thrown away our lead. We had some chances to win but we couldn’t finish them. It’s up to us to pick ourselves up, it’s still a point gained. Now we have to kick on. The victory was at our fingertips, now we have to go back to work to get back to winning ways.”