Jean-Louis Gasset: "A great satisfaction"

Before the match, you said that you would be satisfied if you reach the 40-point mark this evening…

That’s done. And it’s a great satisfaction. Of course, we preferred the first period to the second. But, even in Rennes, we were good during the first 45 minutes. This evening, we demonstrated some efficiency and we could have scored more points before the break. We then saw that 2-0 was the best we were going to do if we let in a goal 20 minutes before the end. When we dominate like that, you have to be able to finish the match well.

That’s the only regret that you have?

There were two counter attacks that we should have better controlled in the second half. We really like to have the ball. In the second half, the game wasn’t smooth, it wasn’t nice to watch. I think that the physical strain had an impact because we played Sunday. The players who arrived during the transfer window needed game time. (Youssef) Aït Bennasser hasn’t yet played 90 minutes. (Mathieu) Debuchy was supposed to play a bit in the starting lineup against Paris. There are some physical adjustments that still must be made.

Do you feel that your team hasn’t gotten their set speed back?

In the first half, I found that the team was playing well. However, there were many feats and unforeseen developments. We were restless because we hadn’t won in a month. We wanted to maintain this score and took too far a step back, we lacked technical control. We just countered but we really like to control the game. Like we did in the first half.

What did you think of the first match with Yann M’Vila et Youssef Aït Bennasser together in the midfield?

It was good in the first half. After the first half, it wasn’t as good. We lost balls easily. But that’s due to the physical strain. The ground was also difficult to play on for one-touch passing. There was also a bit of restlessness. When you have luck, you try things. It was a bit forced because we didn’t want the game to end in a tie.

The VAR also came into play this evening…

For both situations, the referee whistled. He then went back on his decision. We can’t talk about the VAR every week. If, after having reviewed the footage, the referee changes his mind, we trust him.