If the passage of “Galette” in Forez, on the occasion of the 8th day of Ligue 1, is a distant memory for the Greens in search of maintenance, his return could rekindle nostalgia for better days.
When the technician (55) took over from his mentor, Alain Perrin, in December 2009, ASSE was already on the verge of financial and sports bankruptcy. And the two shareholders were already not in agreement on the behavior to be taken towards Galtier, then inexperienced as N.1, supported by Roland Romeyer while Bernard Caïazzo dreamed of Luis Fernandez.
Difficult start for Galtier
But the native Marseillais hung on, ensured the maintenance in the spring of 2010 before allowing the Greens to win the Coupe de la Ligue in 2013, their first trophy since 1981. And Saint-Etienne also found Europe with the Europa League, before his departure in 2017.
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On Saturday, he will face a club from Saint-Etienne in a sporting situation identical to the one he experienced when he took over the professional team. And as Puel found him when he was appointed on October 4, 2019.
“I always keep a close eye on ASSE. I was there for over eight years. I have fond memories of it. With the people of the club, supporters and Stéphanois. Because there is a lot of passion around this club, ”he said on Friday.
“The Greens are not having the results that match their efforts. We expect a tough game against an opponent whose intense play is like their coach, “continued Galtier who” has a lot of respect “for Puel.
“He is in Saint-Etienne, I am in Nice where he has done well, and I have benefited from his work in Lille. He builds in all his clubs, ”said the technician from Nice.
At OGCN, Puel has generally left a good memory after laying the foundations for a modern club, between 2012 and 2016, which has taken off in recent years.
Puel manager and member of the management board
Not sure that in Saint-Etienne, where he occupies the position of general manager and sits on the Management Board, we hear the same speech among the supporters between a worrying financial context and the attempt to sell the club.
When he kicked off his first game in Saint-Etienne on 6 October 2019 against Lyon, winning 1-0, the Greens were bottom of the table.
They are still at the bottom of Ligue 1 today, only saved from the red lantern on goal difference, unfavorable to Metz (-7 against -8) and without success after seven days.
Admittedly, Puel (60 years old), with very limited financial means, seeks to play young people, perhaps not yet quite competitive in Ligue 1.
But the Gambardella Cup-winning U19s are missing from the baseline when they haven’t already been transferred like defender Wesley Fofana, in the summer of 2020 for 35million euros.
Several players have been extended lately to bolster player assets. And without a buyer by the winter, and with the start of the African Cup with six to eight players in January, ASSE will hardly be able to strengthen itself.
For now, Claude Puel has therefore been unable to get Saint-Etienne off the ground, despite being a finalist in the 2020 Coupe de France, beaten by Paris Saint-Germain (1-0). At this stage, he must above all manage the urgency of results because the threat of relegation is serious for the Greens.