Former Royal Challengers Bangalore star AB de Villiers said the side’s loss to Gujarat Titans by six wickets at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Sunday is a “tough pill to swallow”. The loss meant that the hosts could not qualify for the playoffs in the ongoing Indian Premier League 2023 season.
De Villiers on his Twitter wrote, “Tough pill to swallow. Well tried RCB. Shubman Gill and the Titans simply too good today.” The 39-year-old also appreciated the ton of Virat Kohli as he further wrote “Virat is there when we need him!”
Despite the ton from Kohli RCB could not get over the line as Shubman Gill slammed a sparkling century. The result paved the way for Mumbai Indians’ entry into the playoffs as the fourth team. Kohli scored his seventh IPL century.
Tough pill to swallow. Well tried RCB. Shubman Gill and the Titans simply too good today
However, GT dashed RCB’s hopes by reaching the target in 19.1 overs. For GT, the in-form remained unbeaten on a 52-ball 104, while Vijay Shankar made 53 in 35 in the rain-delayed match.
Asked to bat first, RCB were off to a brisk start with both Faf du Plessis and Virat Kohli finding the boundaries at will. This was Kohli’s second straight hundred.
Virat is there when we need him!
— AB de Villiers (@ABdeVilliers17) May 21, 2023
“I can’t ask anything better from the boys. Last year, everything went well for us. We were expecting people to challenge us. The boys showed tremendous character.” Du Plessis couldn’t hide his disappointment after the defeat.
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“Virat played an unbelievable knock to give us a chance and thought that was a good score, but Shubman played incredibly well to take the game away from us.” Dinesh Karthik’s woeful run with bat really hampered RCB’s prospects this season and on that, Du Plessis said, “Last year DK had a purple patch and was finishing games left, right and centre, but this season it wasn’t to be.
Rafa Nadal’s absence from the French Open due to injury has blown the men’s draw wide open with Carlos Alcaraz the “slight favourite” over Novak Djokovic, former Grand Slam champion John McEnroe has said.
Nadal has not played since his hip injury at the Australian Open and the 14-times winner at Roland Garros said it could be months before he returns to action as he prepares to end his career in 2024.
“Honestly it was just so one-sided the way Rafa was able to dominate that all you can talk about is Rafa,” McEnroe told Eurosport.
“Novak has as many Grand Slams (22), but you don’t put him in the same breath there (at Roland Garros) as Rafa. He set a bar so high that it’s impossible to imagine anyone even get close to it.
“So from that standpoint alone, it’s much more open … The ideal would have been, if Rafa was still playing at a very high level and someone was good enough to beat him when he’s playing great. That’s what people really wanted to see.”
McEnroe said Djokovic has a great chance to win a calendar slam this year but the 64-year-old said youngsters like world number one Alcaraz and Holger Rune can make the step up.
“I would say Alcaraz would be the slight favourite to win this,” McEnroe said.
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“Alcaraz has a lot of pressure now because he’s just such an unbelievable breath of fresh air. He’s so electric, the way he plays, he’s got such a great personality that people want him to win.
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“But then you got to back it up. He’s 20-years-old, but he just seems like such a great ambassador for our sport that you’re sort of pulling for him.”
In an era of fleeting loyalties, Marco Reus is an outlier. The German playmaker came to Borussia Dortmund in 2012, joining a club that he had grown up supporting but was rejected by when he was 16.
Saturday was the chance for the club to pay its loyal soldier back but sadly, after drawing 2-2 with Mainz in the last day of the league, the elusive Bundesliga crown still evades Reus. As Bayern Munich defeated Koln and added another silverware in a trophy cabinet overflowing with them, Dortmund will look back to this day in the future and think what could have been.
Since joining BVB from Borussia Monchengladbach 11 years ago, Reus has been a constant at the club even as many superstars — Robert Lewandowski, Erling Haaland, Mario Gotze and Mats Hummels — have come and gone. It’s not as though he didn’t have lucrative offers for his services from elsewhere. But somehow, for a club that has seemed almost nonchalant about letting go of their marquee names almost every year, Reus was always indispensable at the die Schwarzgelben.
♾️ „Und wir werden immer Borussen sein, es gibt nie nie nie einen anderen Verein…“ pic.twitter.com/1CQe0Me6a2
In his stint at the club, he helped them reach the UEFA Champions League final in his very first season. He would eventually win two DFB Pokals with them as well as getting named Germany’s player of the year in 2012 and 2019.
“The whole club, the whole city would be so happy for Marco Reus if we could get our hands on the title this weekend,” Dortmund’s Sporting Director Sebastian Kehl had told international journalists in a round table earlier this week.
“I know what it would mean to him in his role as captain. Marco has written so many stories here and has done great things at this club for so many years. One thing that’s always been said about him is that he has never managed to win the title. I think that’s something that has always grinded away at him a bit,” added Kehl.
That dream was shattered once again in cruel fashion as the playmaker sat in the middle of the field with a stunned expression as reality dawned on him. Ultimately, it was too hard to bear as the tears started flowing down his face, as years of hurt and disappointment culminated in that single moment.
😫😔😣 pic.twitter.com/I62zzuI9fk
— Borussia Dortmund (@BVB) May 27, 2023
Destiny’s step-child
It wasn’t just on the club level that misfortune had stalked him.
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Over the last decade, Reus was one of those players who was perpetually within touching distance of glory. But, for one reason or another, he would keep falling just short of what his vast potential promised.
His is a career that is often regarded as the perfect example of what could have been. For, the German has had the worst of luck when it comes to representing the national side, picking up injuries just before major tournaments.
Before the 2014 World Cup — a competition which Germany ended up winning — he was ruled out due to an ankle injury. Fitness issues kept him out of Euro 2016 two years later. He managed to play the 2018 World Cup but Germany were eliminated from the group stage. He ruled himself out from the 2020 Euros.
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Reus was all set to represent Germany in the recently-concluded 2022 World Cup. But again, fate had other plans. He was forced to sit this one out due to another ankle injury.
Dortmund’s players sit on the pitch after the German Bundesliga soccer match between Borussia Dortmund and FSV Mainz 05 in Dortmund, Germany, Saturday, May 27, 2023. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)
Slow, but steady
Saturday night was supposed to be the crowning moment for a player who has given his sweat, tears and blood for the club but destiny had other ideas. The 33-year-old has slowed down considerably this season as the ravages of age, coupled with injuries, finally caught up with him. The Dortmund captain hasn’t started a Bundesliga match since April 1 against Bayern, instead electing to come off the bench in each of the next seven league games.
A team man till the very end, he was content to do his part as the likes of Jude Bellingham, Sebastian Haller, Karim Adeyemi and Donyell Malen exploded forward to take the world by storm.
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Even after this debilitating loss, some of these players might leave for pastures newer and greener. But Reus will still be around. Standing in front of the fabled yellow wall at Signal Iduna Park. Or doing whatever it takes to help the club. As he always has.
Ravindra Jadeja was not the highest run-getter of the IPL final that saw Chennai Super Kings complete the Penta, nor did he take the most wickets. He didn’t even hit the maximum sixes or fours in the last-ball thriller that Gujarat Titans lost. The all-rounder wasn’t the player of the match nor did he take home any of the many awards handed to the season’s stand-out performers. But in the wee hours of an IPL final that stretched to three days, Jadeja achieved something that was way more precious and lasting – he won the trust of the fans and faith of the terraces. CSK will always remember Jadeja for the game where he scored just 15 runs and had figures of 1/38.
Chennai Super Kings bowler Ravindra Jadeja. (PTI Photo)
All seemed lost for CSK for most of the game’s final over. Gujarat Titans seemed all set to retain the title. Cameos by Conway, Rahane and Rayudu had taken CSK close to the finish line but the final push was needed. Dhoni had failed to be the last action hero. Like in the 2011 World Cup final, he had promoted himself and even walked out with the same purpose as he had done at Wankhede on the magical April night. History wasn’t to repeat itself. Dhoni’s first-ball duck would break the heart of the fans who had painted every stadium where CSK played this season yellow.
With Jadeja and Shivam Dube at crease, Chennai needed 13 in the last over. Mohit Sharma showed unreal poise and bowled four near-perfect yorkers. It now boiled down to 10 from 2 balls. Dhoni had his eyes shut, he couldn’t take it any longer. The camera would move to the stands to show a young girl in tears. Like many around her, she too seemed in an emotional mess. The long-dragging three-day IPL final had taken a toll on those who had stuck around despite the rain delay. The world’s biggest cricket stadium was brimming with tension.
Aloof to the heavy weather around him, Jadeja wasn’t pressing the panic button. He has been around, he has been in these situations before. He played his first IPL final at 19 when he was part of the Rajasthan Royals 2008 Cinderella story. Shane Warne had called him a rock star, they defeated CSK in the final to be IPL’s first champions. As luck would have it, for some time now he has been under the wings of another inspirational captain in Dhoni.
At Ahmedabad well past mid-night as Monday turned to Tuesday, Jadeja did what Dhoni had done for CSK for all these years. He left it for late, he waited for that crucial moment of the chase when the pressure got transferred from the batsman to the bowler. Like his captain, he waited for the bowler to make a mistake. And he did.
Ravindra Jadeja wheels off in celebration after hitting the winning runs against GT. (Express Photo by Nirmal Harindran)
After those near-perfect four balls by Mohit, coach Ashish Nehra and captain Hardik Pandya made a costly intervention. Nehra sent in a player with a water bottle and probably a message too. Hardik too gave his two cents. The long chat inside the nervous huddle broke Mohit’s rhythm. GT’s death-overs bowler faltered in length on the fifth ball. It was slightly short of the yorker-length and Jadeja, waiting in the crease, hit to the sightscreen. It could well be the most famous six of his long career. With four needed on the last ball, Mohit missed the line. Jadeja guided the ball on his legs past the short fine leg fielder. The ball crossed the rope, the yellow around the stadium exploded in celebrations.
Jadeja had done a Dhoni. He was running towards the stands, he even forgot to do his ‘swishing sword’ celebration. In a rare show of emotion, Dhoni would lift him in the air. Jadeja could possibly go down in history as the only player to receive this warm a hug from Dhoni. Jadeja would dedicate his knock to the captain and profusely thank the fans for being there for them and ask them to keep cheering for them in the future.
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Chennai Super Kings’ captain MS Dhoni, center, lifts teammate Ravindra Jadeja after they sealed their fifth IPL title. (AP Photo)
CSK’s man of the moment was being the bigger man, he didn’t let his angst spoil the celebratory mood. Jadeja and the CSK fans have famously not got along. Chepauk hasn’t quite warmed to Jadeja as it has to Dhoni or even Suresh Raina. Over the years, mostly through social media, Jadeja has hinted that he hasn’t got the attention or affection he deserves.
Being the world’s leading all-rounder, an all-format India regular and winner of 5 IPL titles; Jadeja isn’t underestimated by his rivals or undervalued by the franchise but has been under-appreciated by the supporters. It is a grudge he has carried for far too long. At Chepauk while Dhoni and others have been received by ear-splitting whistles, Jadeja hasn’t quite got the same reception.
Mostly batting just above Dhoni, CSK’s fanatics have cynically wished for Jadeja’s dismissal so that they will get Thala’s darshan. After a game when asked why he doesn’t bat higher in the order, he said: “I keep hearing Mahi bhai’s chants. If I bat higher, then the crowd will wait for me to get out.” There have also been whispers about cracks in his relationship with Dhoni. They have a history.
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Last season Jadeja was stripped of captaincy midway through the season. He was to be Dhoni’s understudy, his heir-apparent but the management, in an effort to stop the team’s mid-season slide, had called off the transition. Dhoni was back at helm and Jadeja, if those in the know are to be believed, was hurt. Officially, he was injured.
Within days he would post a message that said: “Don’t lower your standards for anyone or anything. Self respect is everything”. Even this season, the cryptic posts haven’t stopped, fueling the rumour mills. On May 21, he tweeted: “Karma will get to you, sooner or later it surely will”. On May 24, his post was more direct. He put out a picture of him holding the giant cheque at the award ceremony that said “Uptox most valuable asset of the match”. The caption said: “Uptox knows but some fans don’t”.
It’s puzzling why Jadeja doesn’t get the applause that he so rightly deserves. His very cerebral art of bowling hardly gets intellectualised, like is the case of his long-standing bowling partner Ravichandran Ashwin. India has failed to acknowledge the feat of an genuine all-rounder whose batting average is better than that of Ian Botham, Kapil Dev, Andrew Flintoff and Shaun Pollock and his bowling figures are better than those of Bishan Singh Bedi, Erapalli Prasanna, S Venkataraghavan and BS Chandrasekhar.
Back in 2013, Jadeja had tweeted: “Don’t even try and judge me dude. You have no idea what the f*ck I’ve been through.” In a recent interview to The Indian Express, Jadeja was reminded of the post. He didn’t evade the question but gave an answer. “On days when I haven’t done well, they start trolling, calling me names. They say things without knowing the kind of hard work I have done to reach this stage. Small, small things … there are so many struggles and sacrifices that I don’t even remember now.”
He would raise his voice and add: “Those idlers sitting in front of a computer have nothing to do, they sit and make memes and write anything that comes to their mind … See honestly, those things don’t matter to me. If they did, I wouldn’t have reached this far … They have no idea what all I had to go through to reach here. They say he is playing IPL and earning so much money … Believe me, in IPL, they don’t pick you by seeing your face.”
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On the final day of the IPL, he showed he certainly wasn’t picked for his face. The 10 runs he scored off the last two balls will go a long way in bridging the distance between him and the terraces. Thala will be around next year, high time Chepauk warms up to CSK’s MVP. To break the ice, they should start calling him Chinna Thala (Little Thala).
The great Matthew Hayden reckons India’s title drought in ICC events in the past decade has to come down to the players’ mindset as skill was never an issue and has advised them to “forget about the outcome” going into the World Test Championship final against Australia.
India’s last ICC title came under the leadership of M S Dhoni back in 2013 and since then the team has fallen short in high pressure knock-out games including the 2017 Champions Trophy final against Pakistan, 2019 ODI World Cup semifinal versus New Zealand and more recently the T20 World Cup semifinal against England last year.
In the inaugural WTC final two years ago, India finished runners-up to New Zealand.
In terms of the financial and talent resources, India have been the sport’s powerhouse for long but the big titles have eluded them.
Can they turn it around against Australia at The Oval in the final from June 7? “It’s certainly not a question of skill. So, it has to be a question of just the opportunity and the mindset going in. I mean, cricket is life here, it is the DNA of sport and has no other competitors,” Hayden, an important member of the all-conquering Australian team of 2000s, told PTI in an interview.
Cricket’s popularity in India is unmatched and therefore it creates more pressure around the players, said Hayden.
“In Australia I could walk down the street and largely be unrecognised, especially with this terrible beard and hat on (laughs). But it’s also got great competitive sports besides cricket. Rugby, football, our watersports, surfing, outdoor sports, here in India it’s very insular and there’s a lot of pressure.
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“It’s the same with Pakistan cricket as well. There is one sport and it is cricket so it’s a mindset thing.” “Being cautious about looking for the scoreboard and looking for the titles and just playing and being a part of process, something when you look at franchise setups, Gujarat Titans have done really well this year and CSK have done very well. Mumbai Indians as well believe in a certain process.
“So, that would be my advice to Indian cricket to forget the outcomes, but buy into the process,” said one of the most destructive openers of his generation.
‘Australia would’ve had huge advantage at Lord’s but Oval will be 50-50
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Hayden believes either side doesn’t enjoy an advantage going into the final but the IPL players from both teams would be well prepared. Majority of India’s squad members played in the IPL while only three from Australia were part of the two month long tournament.
“The Test championship puts context to Test cricket relevance. And you’ve got two of the greatest nations in cricket, head to head in India and Australia. Being at The Oval, it’s a good opportunity for it to be a venue which doesn’t necessarily favour one particular side or the other.
“It’s by tradition England’s bounciest, more even surfaces. It doesn’t favour the spinners, doesn’t really favour the seamers so it’s quite a neutral venue. It’s nice to see them playing in that venue in particular, had it been at the Lord’s, Australia would have had a huge advantage there,” he said.
‘Players who played in the IPL at an advantage’
For someone like Cameron Green, a maiden IPL season was good preparation for the high stakes WTC final, said Hayden.
“Don’t pay too much mind to the preparation of either nation. I don’t sense that there’s a great disadvantage in playing IPL cricket as opposed to playing county cricket.
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“The level is so extreme in high performance at IPL level. Take someone like a Cameron Green for example. He’s had a a bumper of a season for Mumbai Indians.
“It’s a no brainer whether he is playing here or whether he’s actually playing in county cricket or wherever. He’s exposed to the highest level of sport and if anything, I think there may be a slight advantage for the guys that have been playing that higher level (IPL).
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“The mix of playing high performance cricket at IPL now going to match specific venue training, is excellent preparation,” said Hayden when asked about both teams not playing a warm-up game ahead of WTC title clash.
‘Rishabh Pant one of big losses to Indian cricket’
The absence of the dashing Rishabh Pant, who is recovering from injuries sustained in a car accident in December, leaves a big void in India’s Test eleven, said Hayden, who is backing Ishan Kishan to don the wicketkeeping gloves instead of K S Bharat.
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“One of the big losses to Indian cricket right now is Rishabh Pant. If I was an Indian selector, I certainly go with the more dynamic wicketkeeper batter Ishan Kishan, he also adds that bit of swagger to the batting line up and in the fielding unit as well.”
The spinners could play a role at The Oval as the game progresses and that is why Hayden said India must play both Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja.
“What works for India is two spinners. It doesn’t work for Australia, apart from the outrageous turners that we saw in India during the Border-Gavaskar trophy.
“I know the Australian combination will always want to have three quicks. Obviously, Nathan Lyon’s is our spinner and Cameron Green can play as an all rounder. I mean, that’s, that’s how important Cameron Green is. That’s a powerful and important role that he plays as an all rounder. So it’s great to have him in form,” he said.
‘You are going see a lot of Shubman Gill for the next 15 years’
Hayden concluded with rich praise for the in-form Shubman Gill.
“You will see a lot of Shubman Gill for the next 15 years. The foundations behind a good Test cricketer are pretty simple. And Shubman, and KL Rahul before him, fundamentally have fantastic games. So, he’ll be a superstar of any cricket format for a very long time.
“One of the biggest advantages that Shubman has and he showed this when he was touring Australia is he’s very good off the backfoot as well.
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“So square of wicket play is excellent. And that’ll stand him in good stead even against the best Test sides in the world,” Hayden added.
George Russell took advantage of F1’s current spring break to spend an afternoon at the Rolex Monte Carlo Masters on Tuesday, supporting tennis’ world n° 1 Novak Djokovic.
After Djokovic beat Russia’s Ivan Gakhov to access the third round of the tournament, the Serbian and the Mercedes driver met up for a courtside chat in which the two stars discussed some of the hardships of their respective sport.
“It was good. It’s a solid start, but it could always be better,” Djoko told the 2022 Brazilian Grand Prix winner when asked by the latter how his return to action had gone.
“When perfection isn’t on that level, you’re looking to get better, to improve.”
When in Monaco 🏎️@DjokerNole and @GeorgeRussell63 meet after Djokovic’s win 🙌@ROLEXMCMASTERS | #RolexMonteCarloMasters pic.twitter.com/DAhwgxJ7Lh
— ATP Tour (@atptour) April 11, 2023
As for the Serbian, the 22-time Grand Slam winner queried Russell on his recent travels and where he heads to next.
“We’ve got Azerbaijan, that’s the next one,” said Russell. “We just came back from Melbourne. Melbourne’s a killer, it’s probably taken a week to come back.
“We were meant to go to China next week. We’ve actually got a couple weeks off, Azerbaijan, and then the season really kicks off. Then Miami.”
Djokovic noted that Formula 1 “does not really keep to the continents”, to which Russell replied that “there are a few conversations about this, we’re left, right and centre.”
Hopefully, F1 boss Stefano Domenicali will have picked up on Djoko’s astute observation.
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After being linked with multiple clubs over the summer transfer window, Jason Denayer has finally decided on his future, with the former Manchester City man joining United Arab Emirates club Shabab Al-Ahli.
The Dubai-based club announced the arrival of Denayer on Wednesday. The report suggests that the 27-year-old defender has agreed to a one-year contract with the club that has the ex-Monaco boss, Leonardo Jardim, as their first-team manager.
Denayer left OL as a free agent after his contract with the Ligue 1 side expired in June 2022. In the summer transfer window, the Belgian was linked with moves to Rennes, Beşiktaş, Trabzonspor, Fiorentina, and Valencia. However, none of those European clubs came forward to meet Denayer’s interest.
Denayer joined OL from Man City on a permanent deal in the summer transfer window of 2018. During his time in France, the former Celtic defender made 139 appearances.
He was part of the Lyon team that beat Manchester City to qualify for the Champions League semi-final two years ago. Nevertheless, a 3-0 defeat to Bayern Munich appeared to be a stumbling block between the dream of playing the final and the Belgian aspiring to represent his country in the upcoming World Cup.
Le10sport are reporting that, following an incredible start to the season, Lorient manager Régis Le Bris is attracting interest from clubs in France and abroad. Nice reportedly are interested in his profile, but should Les Aiglons decide to part ways with Lucien Favre, they would also be interested in Lens’ Franck Haise.
Lorient are currently third in Ligue 1 with a record of seven wins, one draw and one loss. Prior to this season, Le Bris had never managed a professional side, but he has made the second-best start to a Ligue 1 campaign of any French coach in the league’s history.
As a result, he is attracting interest. According to Le10sport, he is being considered by foreign clubs, but also clubs within France. Nice, for example, who recently hired former Lorient man Fabrice Bocquet as CEO, reportedly “admires his characteristics.”
Favre has endured a difficult return to the Allianz Riviera to the point where it was strongly rumoured that he was set to lose his job during the intentional break. That didn’t come to pass, and his side won in the Europa Conference League on Thursday to move joint-top of their group.
Le Bris isn’t the only name in contention to replace Favre, should Nice be inclined to make that decision. Lens manager Haise is also in the frame following his brilliant start to the current campaign. Sporting director Florent Ghisolfi has just left Le Sang et Or to take up the same role at Nice.
Lens have this morning announced that wing-back Jimmy Cabot, who came on as a substitute in the win over Montpellier on Saturday, has suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury which will keep him out of action over an extended period of time.
The 28-year-old will undergo surgery this week. Since making the move from Angers this summer, Cabot has made 11 appearances for Franck Haise’s side, registering one assist.
The Frenchman had also been kept out of action for much of the second half of last season with an ankle injury, putting an early end to a season that had seen him successfully make the transition to the wing-back role and notch six assists for Le SCO.
The Artois side, who currently sit in third place, are due to travel to Marseille next weekend in what will be a decisive showdown among two of Ligue 1’s main contenders for the Champions League spots this season.
Nice secured a 2-1 victory over FK Partizan in the UEFA Europa Conference League on Thursday evening as Lucien Favre’s men remain hopeful of qualifying for the knock-out stages of the respective competition.
Speaking after the match, the former Borussia Dortmund manager said that he was pleased with the performance of his boys, opining that his team had played positive football. However, he was also a little concerned about the chances missed by the Nice forwards. As quoted by L’Équipe, Favre said,
“It was a good match. We played football, much more forward. There were some appeals, some openings and some speed. I’ve been saying that since June… But we were not good for a few minutes and we took a goal. On the other hand, we had a good reaction. We had to win this game. It’s true, we had a few chances that we didn’t convert. That’s the way it is. At least we created them. That’s not bad. And then we didn’t keep going behind, because there was movement and ideas. That’s the basis I want for the future.”
Owing to the victory, Nice currently have as many points as Partizan, who share an encouraging prospect of making the next round of the UEFA Europa Conference League with eight points from five matches. Köln host Nice in a crucial encounter next week.