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Ursea: "A breath of fresh air"

Adrian Ursea spoke to the press after Le Gym’s victory at Lens (0-1).

Coach, this victory does you a lot of good after a difficult week…

It’s a nice feeling. Especially after the week that we have just had, with the discussions that we had and the supporters coming to the training ground. Yes, this win makes us happy.

Do you think that this victory is a consequence of what happened this week?

I don’t have anything that can make me say that. I imagine that all of the discussions that took place and the messages sent by our supporters definitely played a role. But I would say that above anything else, the players took note of the situation that we were in. I told them that the only place that a footballer can do the talking is on the pitch. And this evening, they talked the talk.

This evening, the plan was to remain solid defensively?

Yes. Given what had happened in the previous matches, where we had given away a lot, we said that we needed to keep things tight defensively, that we need to remain united and solid. From that moment on, you start to find a team. When we work as a block, you start to see that. That’s what we wanted this evening.

The return of Pierre Lees-Melou helped you a lot…

We all know the role that Pierre plays in the dressing room and in the team.

Does the notion of home and away matches still have the same meaning?

At the moment, no. They are more like friendlies, even though we still feel the tension and the stakes of a league match. Without the fans, it doesn’t feel the same.

How are you feeling this evening?

This match gives us things to build on for the future. I hadn’t seen a Nice side play in this way in recent times. It’s clearly possible. These are qualities that we will be able to add to those we already know. It wasn’t an extraordinary match to watch, but for us we did the job. That’s what pleases us this evening.

What happened to Youcef Atal?

We don’t know yet. I haven’t yet had an update from the medical team. I hope for him that it won’t be too serious. He felt some tightening. I hope it will just be that and nothing more serious.

Would the contact between Bambu – Ganago have been given as a penalty a few weeks ago during the poor run?

These are things that happen in matches. There was a referee. He is the person that makes the decisions. But probably a few weeks ago - when I think back to the goal we conceded at Metz - these are things that could have happened during a difficult run. Now, it’s not just because we won this evening that all our problems are solved. It’s a breath of fresh air. And it’s now down to us to recover well and to prepare well for the next match.

A word on Hicham Boudaoui’s performance?

I needed to change something, to find something tactically and as a team. Hicham had an excellent match. I played him there because I wanted him to play as a number six because he is a very intelligent player and who has incredible ability to do what we ask of him on the pitch. He is a lad that runs a lot, around 12 kms, and the runs he makes are of a high intensity. We clearly have a player that lots of coaches would like to have. This evening, I have very happy with his performance.