Delighted by the reaction of his players to falling behind on the scoreboard, Olivier Pantaloni spoke at the traditional post-match press conference following his side’s thrilling 2-1 away win over Brest.

Coach, you must feel a great sense of satisfaction after this match, which started off going against you and was marked by a rather incredible match for your goalkeeper…

Yes, an incredible match! And for Yéhvann (Diouf), it’s ended in the best possible way after a difficult start. We even wondered whether he’d be able to carry on, because mentally, it can really take its toll on a player – the goalkeeper’s role is a tricky one. When you make mistakes like that, it really hits you hard. The fact that the players immediately went over to him to support him, I think that gave him the strength to carry on and save that penalty at the end of the match.

Did you doubt whether he’d be able to come back after the break?

Not at half-time. I asked myself that question straight after the mistake; I spoke to my staff and the goalkeeping coach, who felt we should leave him on the pitch.

Did you ask him how he was feeling at half-time?

No. We discussed the fact that, from the moment he stayed on the pitch, there was that immediate show of support from the players and that, given we were behind, we needed to show our solidarity with Yéhvann and make sure we made up for his mistake by going on to secure a win. I think the players rose to the occasion.

How would you assess your first-half performance, and how did the second half unfold more favourably?

The first half was rather lacklustre, but in my view that was mainly down to our loss of possession and a significant lack of technical precision, because in terms of the game itself, I don’t feel we were put under any real pressure, apart from on a few long balls. But our defenders were able to cope with the intensity of the Brest forwards’ runs. In the second half, there was much more precision and movement. We also made some adjustments to the positioning of Gauthier (Hein) and Momo’ Amoura, who were playing a bit deeper, which meant we were able to link up better in midfield – something we hadn’t managed to do because they’d been playing far too high up in the first half. I think that allowed us to create more chances and ultimately led to this victory.

When the penalty was awarded, did you think Diouf would save it?

I didn’t think he’d save it, but I did think that, given what he’d been through in this match – the fact that we’d managed to come back and take the lead – he’d have the strength and the immense determination to save that penalty. That’s exactly what he managed to do.

Do you think this favourable turn of events and the players’ reaction around Yéhvann will help you in your efforts to build a team?

Absolutely. You are witnessing – especially this evening – that a team was growing and that it can achieve great things this season.

As for Elye Wahi, we saw him offside quite a few times, but he still did you a favour by getting you back into the game…

He’s the sort of player who, in a key moment, can turn a match around. In this instance, tonight (Friday), he enabled us to equalise. There were quite a few wasted chances in his play before that, but he’s so dangerous… He needs very few opportunities to be effective, and he proved that again tonight.

What did you think of Sofiane Diop’s performance off the bench?

You could sense he’d been champing at the bit a bit since he stopped being a first-team regular, but he’s continued to work hard and remain just as committed. He deserved to come on, and I think the goal he scored will do him a world of good going forward.

Have you heard anything about Jonathan Clauss, who came off limping?

He’s suffering from a sprained ankle. It might keep him out for a few weeks.

Finally picking up points away from home is also very positive…

We talked about it in the team talk – the fact that Nice hadn’t won away from home for quite some time. I simply told the lads that it wasn’t a foregone conclusion, that if we were determined to go out and get a win, we’d have to put certain things in place, and I think that’s exactly what they did in the second half.