Laurent Mortel: “Fleury is on a great run”

Preparation limited by time

We had to think very quickly after qualifying for the Coupe de France on Sunday, and switch gears very quickly between analyzing that match and preparing for the match against Fleury scheduled for Friday evening to kick off the Arkema Première Ligue. On the positive side, we've been able to get our bodies back into balance by managing the playing time of players returning from injury. Today, we can be happy because we have a full squad.

Fleury, stinging in depth

Fleury are on a great run of form, with a draw against Paris SG (0-0) and a diligent performance in the Coupe de France that saw them qualify (0-12). They're a team that loves depth. We're going to have to limit that depth by getting them to play on the offensive. They're a fine team who can hurt us, especially as they've embarked on an interesting recruitment cycle.

An ideal opponent for ASSE

We know that the top 4 places in the league are almost impossible to beat, but if we want to compete with teams ranked between 4th and 7th, Fleury are the kind of opponents we'd like to see. Fleury is the kind of opponent that can help us see where we stand in the elite.

The first leg as inspiration

Repeating the first half-hour of the first leg (3-2) would be a good thing, but not the rest, because we were worried. And yet, we went into that match with a compact block that caused them problems. We scored three goals and were extremely efficient, something we've been lacking recently. We also need to do better defensively, as it's been a while since we've had a clean sheet.