Patrick Vieira spoke to the press after his side’s defeat in Strasbourg (1-0) during Matchday 11 of L1.

Coach, how would you analyse this match? 

In the first five minutes, we struggled to get into the game. On the whole, when you play a match as important as the one this evening with 7 or 8 players missing, it makes things more complicated. We may have deserved to leave here with a point. We let ourselves go a bit when down to ten men, but in the first half, we struggled to create chances, because we were poorly positioned, we were too narrow which played into their hands, and physically, they were stronger than us. In the first half, we struggled to play in deep, that cost us dearly. In the second, we were a bit more dangerous, but the red card hurt us once again. 

Are you disappointed with certain players? 

No. I am not disappointed, but what’s for sure is that I expect a lot more from certain players, both of those that were there tonight and those that weren’t. 

Do you have any regrets about your starting eleven?

Honestly, no. Even though we were slightly timid in attack, in defence, we were pretty coherent. We were even quite solid. Malang, Dante and Andy were pretty solid. Youcef and Racine lacked a bit of support in attack. Myziane and Alexis maybe weren’t able to find the positions that would have given them a few more options. We also lacked presence up-front. And once we found the forwards, we weren’t able to keep the ball and give them options to play more simply. 

Is there a confidence problem?

Yes, of course. We have a confidence issue, you can feel that. That’s where we need to stick together, remain focused on our objectives and continue to work. It’s the message that I shared with the players at the end of the match. With the return of those players we were missing, I am convinced we will be able to compete. We are going through some difficult times but we need to remain together to wait for members of the squad to return and for us to show another side of us.