Men’s 3-0 at halftime, Lens managed a magnificent comeback in the second half to secure a draw (3-3) against Brest on Friday, opening the 31st day of Ligue 1. This point allows RCL (63 points) to come back within three points of Paris SG, but the latter could take the lead in the standings with a victory against Angers on Saturday. At the end of the match, Lens coach Pierre Sage did not hide his anger in an interview with Ligue1+: “I made a mistake. I wanted everyone to hear my speech at halftime, that’s why they came back in the 50th minute. We were breaking a pact, I didn’t feel respected. I didn’t get what I give.”
And the northern technician continued: “We wanted to rotate after the match 72 hours ago (against Toulouse in the French Cup). Playing time is not given, it is earned. In the heat of the moment, that’s why I feel betrayed. It’s a strong word. I take responsibility for the bad first half of the match. In Metz, I had the same experience, six months later, I made the same mistake. We aired our dirty laundry in public and we exposed ourselves to all of France. From now on, if someone shakes my hand and they don’t play, I don’t want to see any annoyance. From now on, those who play will be the ones I decide. I may have done it a little too late in the season, I regret rotating too much. Tonight (Friday), I opened up and we took a big hit. I want to tell you that if we had won 4-3, I would have said the same thing. Players on top? Did you see the changes…”
“In football, there is no chance. We must respect football.” Author of the first goal in Lens’ comeback, Florian Thauvin admitted that his team “passed on our first act, there is real frustration. Toulouse did not serve as a lesson for us. We made the feat to come back to 3-3 at the end of the match. Given our first half, we were not ready to start the meeting in the best possible way. I don’t know if it’s psychological. In football, there is no chance. We must respect football. We missed the chance to take three points, we must work for the future. I believe the issue is closed, there is no more title race. If you don’t win every weekend, you are out of the race against PSG. It’s a personal feeling, it’s going to be very complicated. We will play until the end but with the result of tonight, we know it’s complicated.”
