Since his arrival on the bench to succeed Claude Puel, Pascal Dupraz had been waiting for the electroshock. His Greens, dead last in Ligue 1 with 12 points on the clock, hoped to start the year 2022 with a success at the Geoffroy-Guichard stadium, against Racing Club de Lens. Against the Blood and Gold, the Stéphanois showed a renewed solidarity.
The Greens don’t hide
From the start of the match, the locals, despite being deprived of very many key elements, showed envy, causing problems for the more borrowed Lensois. Marked by numerous duels, the first act was however quite poor in clear chances. Only Jean-Louis Leca was forced to work against the powerful strike of Yvan Maçon (6th).
Not to miss
It was finally at the end of the first period that the issue was made. It came from the foot of Ryad Boudebouz (38th), perfectly found at the far post by a center signed Adil Aouchiche. The flat foot of the Algerian pushed Jean-Louis Leca to the fault.
Lens overthrows the Stéphanois
Upon returning from the locker room, Lens positioned themselves higher up the field, setting a consistent pace on the less serene Greens in defense. The Lensois were rewarded with a goal from Florian Sotoca, on receiving a corner kick from Jonathan Clauss (77th).
While the match seemed doomed to end with a logical points split, Seko Fofana, the Lensois captain, made his talent speak in the Cauldron. Found on the left side, the midfielder doubled the bet with a splendid strike ending its run in the side net of a helpless Paul Bernardoni (90th + 4). Terrible for AS Saint-Etienne…