After a disappointing performance, the Aiglons stumbled in Amiens during the fourth game of their L1 campaign (0-3).

Football remains a simple sport, in which, when the fundamentals are lacking, rather complicated times follow. The fourth match of the Aiglons’ L1 campaign perfectly illustrated this fact. Lacking inspiration, movement and aggressiveness, the Gym were pushed aside by newly-promoted Amiens who were expecting a lot less. Set-up in a classic 4-4-2, “designed to put the Niçois under pressure” as Mathieu Bodmer had explained before the match, Christophe Pélissier’s side’s good intentions paid off after fifteen minutes. The moment when Gaël Kakuta superbly struck a free-kick from 20 metres out, which Cardinale was unable to deal with, and Kakuta marked his return to France (1-0, 15’).

The Gym and its 4-2-3-1, in which Koziello played alongside Tameze in front of the back four and the trio of Walter-Sneijder-Lees-Melou who were tasked with feeding Alassane Plea up-front, were troubled by this. Its last line of defence was first able to pull off a monstrous stop from Moussa Konaté’s strike, but could only watch on helplessly as the free-kick flew past him. From a corner taken by Bourgaud, the very same Konaté flew past everybody at the front-post and catapulted the ball into the back of the net (2-0, 28’). An immediate and brutal punishment. After this second goal, the Red and Blacks put their foot on the ball, played higher up the pitch, but couldn’t manage to trouble the home side. Two strikes from distance and a corner were the only half-chances that the Aiglons created in the first 45 minutes. And in the other direction, Amiens almost increased their lead, but Bourgaud pulled his shot just too far wide (39’) before seeing his corner beaten away by Cardinale 
 

The spark never came

Aware that his side was heading towards defeat, Lucien Favre tried to take things into hand at the break. The Swiss coach replaced Le Marchand and Tameze with Sarr and St-Maximin, put Walter into the middle and pushed Lees-Melou out right from the beginning of the second period. A smart strike from Walter was dealt with by Gurtner (47') which went to prove that things were improving. An opening for Lees-Melou, sent into the middle with a one-touch delivery by Souquet and then struck towards goal by the outside of Sneijder’s right boot, confirmed this (56'). Unfortunately, the shot slid just past the post.

These two sparks remained twitches. Amiens dealt with them without trembling and denied them with a style based upon simplicity. They dropped but attacked on the break. With a Moussa Konaté up-front who was fully committed in every move. Konaté, once again, wriggled free deep in the Gym’s half and made it three, before being signalled offside (66'). In the same way as Alassane Plea, who got his head to Dante’s cross before the assistant referee raised his flag (72'), even though the ball had been turned away by the opposition goalkeeper.

The Azuréens tried to push on in a disorganised fashion but nothing would come. Except for the 3rd goal, which resulted from a break and a cross from Manzala, which Konaté only had to tap home (3-0, 89').

A bad ending to a bad evening.

An evening that will need to be used in order to move forward.

C.D.

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