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.

October 2022

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November is an important month. It’s the Qatar World Cup, popping up in the middle of the season but, thankfully, not impacting us. As much as I respect Josue Homawoo and Noah Cadiou, Togo and Guadeloupe are unlikely to trouble to tournament in the near future. But the month is weirdly truncated, with what I would swear was an international break if we didn’t have games after it that fall right in the middle of the tournament. Still, three games to play, six points up for grabs and a chance to progress in the cup, and we’re at seven consecutive clean sheets in a row. I want ten now.

To help with that I’ve brought in a Fabien Campiolo, a second goalkeeping coach. He’s not the best coach in France, but he’ll do, and he’ll focus on Fofana’s handling. The young lad has excellent reflexes and, while his handling is decent, it could improve. He’s only 22 though, and he has the potential to be a long-term option in the top flight, should we make it. My job is to help him realise that potential.

First up are Dijon. They are in the chasing pack and in Roger Assale they have a striker that is hot as mustard, although they haven’t managed to score in three games and it’s cost them, as they’ve slipped down to fifth and allowed a gap to develop to fourth. Still, they are dangerous and they don’t concede to many, so we’ll have to be at our best. Mbala is injured, so Tattevin gets another chance to cement his place.

It’s not really a game that either side deserves to win. The first chance comes after half an hour, when El Hriti misplaces a pass and Dijon send Assale through, but he contrives to fire wide of Fofana’s goal. We then have a go, but Benali drills straight at Reynet. The second half doesn’t get much better, even when I bring on Le Corre to help Tattevin up top. Sparagna hits the post with a header from a free kick, but the game fizzles to nothing. It’s another clean sheet though, so that’s something.

Goal publish their “50 Best Players” in the two week break we have before our next game, and I’ll admit I’m surprised to see Lautaro Martinez at the top of the list. He’s a fine player, but he’s not happy at Inter and, well, really? The highest ranked Parisian is Kylian Mbappe in 5th, who joined up with Man City in the summer, while N’Golo Kante and Kingsley Coman are also included. Paul Pogba makes a claim too, but Disneyland doesn’t count as Paris, so he’s disqualified.

Next up are Guingamp, the side who in their glory days at the start of the last decade boasted players like Laurent Koscielny, Florent Malouda and Didier Drogba. All of which seems a long way away now they are ensconced in mid-table. Points-wise, they are much closer to the relegation zone than to us in the promotion places. It would be nice to really take the game to them, but I’ll settle, as ever, for a 1-0 win if that’s what we can get. We have to remember that we were relegation favourites and playing far above ourselves. Cestor comes in for Homawoo, who needs a rest.

We deserve absolutely nothing from this game. For the first 72 minutes we don’t muster a single effort on goal, not even a desperate long ranger that hits the corner flag. Guingamp aren’t much better, but they are at least keeping Fofana on his toes. And then on 73 it all just… clicks. Cestor brings the ball up the wing, plays it inside to Cadiou, who knocks it wide to Maes. Maes retreats toward his own goal before a lovely reverse ball to Cestor, who keeps going. He plays it in to Tattevin who backs into his man, and lays it off for Maes, he shapes to shoot but plays it sideways to Massouema, who fires home. We are lucky that Guingamp have a goal chalked off in injury time, but it’s another 1-0 win. Another one.

Our first Coupe de France match of the season sees us travel to Sainte-Genevieve Sports. They are sixth in the fourth tier, but because the sides above them include bigger teams’ reserve sides they stand a decent chance of gaining promotion. It’s a risky strategy, but I rotate the squad. I’ll incur a €7,000 fine for not playing enough senior players, but I want to fringe lot to get some minutes, and they should be good enough to take us through.

It’s exactly the kind of performance I want. We are dominant, we are in control, and when Sainte-Genevieve do get forward our reserve defenders stand firm. Our teenage winger Fabio Barroso makes his first ever senior start, and wastes no time at all getting on to the end of a Maes cross for his first senior goal. Maes gets in on the act himself less than ten minutes later, firing in off the post. We settle in then and hold them at arms length. At half time I replace Mbala with Le Corre, and we continue in the same fashion. Cestor adds a third from a corner to add some gloss to the scoreline, and I’m pleased at another clean sheet.

All of which means we finish November in much the same place we started it, in second place in the league, still in the cup, and with six goals conceded. We’ve reached ten consecutive games without conceding, which is lucky because the forwards don’t much look like scoring. Still, who could complain at this form?

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