He knew it, the building site was immense. Claude Puel said it again and again, the temporary upturn after his arrival (early October) should not be overinterpreted. There was still a lot of work. Because too many evils. He knew the tough challenge. But maybe not to that extent.
A little patch of blue sky, ASSE tore off its qualification for the semi-finals of the Coupe de France on Thursday by leaving Épinal (National 2, 4th Division). But it was hard. That it was slow. In Ligue 1, ASSE has lost 7 of its last 8 games. And even 8 of his last 10. Before facing Brest this Sunday (5 p.m.), the Greens are mired in a disturbing 15th place, just a few points in front of the temporary barragiste. In the game, the dynamics are much more clearly Nîmes and Dijon than Stéphanoises.
Puel and his relatives were very surprised to discover the real state of the workforce. Aging. Surprised by the physical state, and also by the state of mind of some. “I trust Puel to get us out of this bad patch, notes Hervé Revelli, the top scorer in club history. He is a builder. You have to give him time to put his ideas in place. "
"Puel has more of a medium-term vision"
Puel struggles even if his media standoff with Timothée Kolodziejczak surprised some at the club. But the coach remains untouchable in the eyes of the leaders. His hands are free. Internally, the M'Vila case, less successful this season since the departure of Jean-Louis Gasset, challenges. Just like Khazri, determining in the choice to install Ghislain Printant, the former assistant of Gasset, at the position of number 1 but who, too, does not find its level of the last season.
“Puel has more of a medium-term vision. The previous management calls out to him, with a lot of 30-year-olds with good contracts and very difficult to resell and whose effect was only beneficial in the short term, "explains a fine connoisseur of the mysteries of Saint-Etienne.
The injured are numerous and staff members, particularly in the medical sector, are in the hot seat. As revealed by L'Equipe on Friday, the head of the recruitment unit, David Wantier, should be sidelined. Puel also wanted more departures this winter. Only Moukoudi, Sissoko and Beric left the club in January. Not Diony and M'Vila, and others, also pushed towards the exit. Diony has however been proposed to several clubs.
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In the tough, ASSE hopes to end the season without being too scared. Before entrusting the reins next season to the duo Puel-Thuilot (the general manager) to set out on new (and better) bases.
