Lens-Marseille: Genesio is right, Thauvin is afloat while Lens is still drowning… The tops and the flops

When a coach trusts his players...

Bruno Genesio gave the perfect illustration on Sunday, during his team's 2-1 victory at RC Lens. While his Olympique de Marseille struggled to find solutions against Lensois who were more than catchy, the Olympian technician chose to trust his bench. In the 76th minute, Angel Gomes and Keyliane Abdallah came on. Six minutes later, the two men turned the game around. The first brings fluidity to the Marseille game and combines with Igor Paixão on the decisive action. The second appeared in the right place, at the right time, to score the winning goal (82nd). A poker move? Above all, it seems that Genesio had the right cards in hand. Beyond this winning coaching, his team knew how to remain organized, patient and enterprising enough to make the difference. Result, a fifth consecutive victory in Ligue 1 and a fourth place in the standings. Carpet…

Also read Ligue 1: OM pushes Lens and looks to the top of the standings

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Amine Gouiri's instinct

It only took two minutes for Amine Gouiri to express his opportunism. Taking advantage of a huge Lens defensive error, the Algerian opened the scoring in an empty cage. His seventh goal of the season in Ligue 1. Always on the lookout, he then found the crossbar (25th), before finding himself at the heart of Abdallah's victorious goal (82nd).

From the sinking of Como to the burst of pride for the Lensois captain

How to re-motivate your troops after such humiliation? Would the culture of the “Squadra”, as he likes to call it, be the right antidote? Florian Thauvin perhaps has neither the miracle cure nor the words to erase “the bad look” against Cesc Fabregas' men (1-9). But this Sunday, the Frenchman at least showed the way a little. Disappearing with his teammates in the technical prowess of Como this Wednesday, he found his captain's costume in Bollaert.

From the first minutes, the former Marseillais multiplied the calls, accelerations and initiatives, as if to remind us that Lensoise pride had not completely collapsed. His header equalizer (20th), from a perfectly adjusted cross by another Florian… Sotoca, rewarded this commitment. Always available, sometimes forced to drop very low to touch the ball but in vain...

FLOPS

The defense that is scuttling

Nine goals conceded on Wednesday evening, and clearly, the pill has still not passed. Still traumatized? No doubt. The demons of Como crossed the Alps to come and haunt Bollaert. Especially at the start of the match... Jonathan Gradit misses his transmission to Samson Baidoo, who lets the ball slip away thinking that Robin Risser is behind him. Result, Amine Gouiri just has to push the ball into an empty cage. An almost unreal disagreement, four days after the European shipwreck. And perhaps the most worrying thing is this. The Lensois no longer even need their opponents to put them in difficulty. They now take care of it on their own.

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Harit, the genius but without the lightning

It's hard to know which way to dance with Amine Harit. Capable of lighting up a match with a simple acceleration, the Moroccan once again showed the full extent of his talent. His slalom through the heart of the Lens defense, concluded by a strike repelled by Risser (39th), is the perfect illustration of this. But behind these flashes, what a waste. Two completely missed free kicks, imprecise transmissions and this unfortunate tendency to lack lucidity when concluding.

And as if that wasn't enough, his replacement Angel Gomes, who came on in the 76th minute, almost immediately participated in the construction of the winning goal. When the one who replaces you finds the key to the match in a few minutes, the comparison is inevitably… cruel.

Lens, five defeats and the specter of the 2014-15 season

“You are the shame of 120 years of history.” At least the message should be clear, right? As soon as they entered the pitch, the Lensois knew what to expect. The supporters had warned. Another banner drove home the point: “The derby for shame, Como for humiliation”. After the setback against Lille (0-1) and the European humiliation against Como (1-9), and now Marseille (1-2), the three home matches, the stands observed ten minutes of encouragement strike.

On the pitch, Yannick Cahuzac's men showed a completely different side. Desire, a reaction and even a few opportunities to overthrow OM. But good intentions don't earn points. With five defeats in ten days, Lens signs its worst start since 2014-2015, a season ended with relegation. The parallel is chilling. In Bollaert, anger has now given way to a deep crisis...