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With Le Gym on a winless streak of six matches (five defeats and one draw in all competitions), Dante spoke to the press on Friday. Determined, the captain didn’t hide away from the shortcomings of his side, who need to “get back to our values”. And they need to do so on Sunday against Les Rémois (Matchday 12 of L1, kick-off at 5pm at the Allianz Riviera).

Get back to “basics”

“The whole of the squad is disappointed. We are aware of the situation and we have conducted our own self-appraisal. We quickly identified our weaknesses: these are the basics. Agression, spirit, teamwork, commitment. We need to show our pride to wear this shirt. We work hard but we are lacking that extra something. We will need to do even more: concentrate even more, put in even more effort for our teammates and leave everything on the field.”

The coach’s criticism 

“Of course we understand it. That is the life of a squad, a club and a player who wants to go far: accepting criticism and remaining humble. We all need to look at ourselves in the mirror, starting with me. Thankfully, I have a huge mirror at home, so I can’t miss it (smiles). You can’t point the finger at someone: it’s everyone. Together, we will be stronger. Criticism is part of the process, we accept it, lift our heads and we work very, very hard. At the end of the day, it’s not the coach who misplaces a pass, loses his duel, doesn’t get in deep: it’s the players. Everyone needs to take on their responsibilities. It’s down to the coach to decide his way of working, and whatever he decides, we will accept it. If he becomes stricter with us, we will accept it, follow him and work even more. We share responsibilities with him because we want everyone who loves this club to be proud of those players on the pitch.“

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