Paris is perhaps the most productive city for player development in the world. But could you beat one of the richest, most global clubs in football using only players from the City of Lights? Martin Vert has been set that challenge.

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December 2022

Our run of clean sheets has come to an end, but we are actually in a better position than before Niort scored against us. We are a point clear of Reims at the top of the table, and two clear of Troyes. Saint-Etienne are a few points further back, but they’re not going away. It should be two from us four come the end of the season, three Goliaths and us, the one David, not so much slinging stones at them as collecting the stones and piling them in front of Yahia Fofana’s goal. I’d love a good slingshot, but there just doesn’t seem to be one willing to join us.

Before we get back into league action, we have the tenth round of the Coupe de France. It’s a strange sense of déjà vu as we take on Troyes, who we played at a similar stage last season. I’m not going to play the cup team here, I want to progress toward the big Ligue 1 sides and Troyes are very good. The one change we do make is to bring Kevin Mbala in for Arnaud Tattevin.

It’s hard not to say we FM’d them here. They are completely dominant, and I don’t think Fofana has had a busier afternoon. He makes 11 saves, and Troyes hit the post twice and the bar once on top of that. El Hriti hits a long ball on 18 minutes that is more hope than plan, and it bounces to Mbala who gives us the lead. Troyes finally break Fofana’s resistance just past the hour, pinning us back on the goal line and cutting back to Manaj to finish. But we force them into penalties, and this time its us that come out on top. Ludovic Butelle would be proud.

I come off the pitch at the end of the game to the news that Kevin Fortune has joined us on loan from Chateauroux. I liked the look of him last season, so I’m pleased to get him in the building. He’s no spring chicken, but he has plenty of experience at the top of Ligue 2 and while he’s not exactly a slingshot, he’s another player who can throw rocks at the big boys. Which can only help. It also allows Thibaut Vialla to go out on loan. He’s only played 11 games in my two years, so it’s only right to give him a chance to show what he can do before his contract expires in the summer.

Saint-Etienne are the only side to have inflicted defeat on us this season. They are the only side to put more than one goal past Fofana too. They are fourth and a few points off of the promotion places, which by their standards is disappointing. But they are still a magnificent side. In fact, they are even better than they were in July, having spent €9m since we last played them. Mike Cestor will sure up the left side and Ndoye will add some solidity in the midfield. Tattevin comes in up top.

We are very good. We are solid, we create chances, and we limit them. Unfortunately, they have a former world cup winner who, frankly, is too good for this level. When he picks up the ball on the right, cuts back from Cestor and loops a long cross into the box, it is on a sixpence for D’Ambrosio to bundle home. But we keep playing out game. Mbala is unlucky to have one ruled out but, as the game draws to a close, Fortune beats him man to get to the byline and drills in a low cross. No mistake this time, Mbala turns it home, and we take a point. A well-deserved point.

Quevilly-Rouen have not been good this season. We beat them comfortably back in August, at the start of our frankly ridiculous unbeaten run, and they haven’t picked themselves up since. They are bottom of the league, they are 11 points from safety and have yet to make it to double-digits. They’ve lost 16 games, and conceded far too many goals. Rouen, presumably, is a miserable place at the moment. I don’t intend to lighten the mood. El Hriti is injured, but Latouchent is fit again and he offers more than Aajji. Sparagna comes back into the middle of defence.

We are much the better side here, putting Quevilly-Rouen to the sword. We constantly probe their brittle defence, and it takes only 16 minutes for Tre to find Barreto in to box, to fire in off the bar. The winger is at it again 15 minutes later, volleying home from a Cadiou cross. They cause some problems toward the end of the half that Fofana deals with, and the second half passes without much incident. The only real concern is Arnaud Tattevin. He has a number of really clear chances, including an open goal, without scoring. His confidence really is in the toilet.

Thierno Balde comes in on loan from PSG. We don’t really need another right back, and I’m not sure he’s an improvement on Jason Tre, but he’s got a lot of potential, and his contract is up in the summer. He isn’t interested in a permanent deal yet, so hopefully the loan will smooth the way for a contract offer in the summer. We also secure a permanent deal for Brahma Doukansy for when his contract expires in the summer. He’s been magnificent this season, so it’s a no-brainer.

Valenciennes are the only Ligue 2 story bigger than ours, although it is for the wrong reasons. The promotion hopefuls have struggled all season, and are deep in the relegation battle. But their form has turned recently, and a four-game unbeaten run has lifted them out of the drop zone for their visit to the Stade Pierre-Brisson. Doukansy has celebrated his permanent deal by getting injured, and Hacene Benali has a virus, so we shuffle the pack for this one.

It’s closer than we’d like, but we see it through. Valenciennes are definitely on an upswing, but when Barreto puts in a corner after just 20 minutes, Homawoo powers the header home. They put us on the back foot in the second half, and after the hour equalise when Louiserre curls home a free kick. I make the changes, and bring on the second striker, and the added pressure doesn’t take long to pay off. Tattevin is hauled down in the box, and Tre does the honours. When Spano gets sent off for assaulting Kevin Fortune, it’s all over.

We are rocked in midweek by the news that Mike Cestor has torn his knee ligaments in training. He will probably be out for the rest of the season. Doukansy can cover at the back, which is lucky because we’ve reached our loan limit so there are no short-term replacement options available to us. Still, we remain in high spirits as we head to Strasbourg for the Coupe de France tie.

Strasbourg are a decent side, sitting comfortably in mid-table in Ligue 1 with games in hand and an outside chance of troubling the European places. They have struggled for goals but don’t concede many either, and will be a really good test for our high-confidence, twenty game unbeaten side. Benali, Cadiou, Doukansy and El Hriti will all start, and I think Latouchent’s defensive qualities will be more important than Tre’s going forward.

It’s our first victory against a Ligue 1 team, but we’re made to work for it, and we need a huge helping of luck along with a Man of the Match performance from Yahia Fofana. That lad is really special. He holds the top-flight side off for the first half an hour, and we barely get a chance. But when Cheikh Ndoye picks up a loose pass, he threads a perfect ball through and Tattevin picks the perfect time to end his goal drought. The second half is more of the same, them attacking, Fofana defending, and eventually Ferhat beats him with a close range header. I freshen the legs and bring on Tre with the hope of reaching a penalty shootout, but instead we apply pressure. On 67 minutes, Hacene Benali is forced wide of the goal and I think the chance is gone. He turns, sees that nobody has followed him into the box, and slips it in from the tightest of angles. I’m not sure what to do, and I freeze. Fortunately the players are good enough to see it though.

Our spirits are lifted even further when we come off the pitch, with the news that we’re going to be rewarded with the visit of the most successful team in the history of the Coupe de France. It’ll be a huge tie, we’ll expect a sellout and, at this stage, we’ll just enjoy the occasion. And what an occasion it’ll be…

February ’23

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