Ligue 1: Angers vs Nantes! The former coach just denied rumors and got fired, and the current coach only had one day to prepare!

Our first topic today isLigue 1: Angers vs Nantes!

Although I have repeatedly stressed long ago that without changing the head coach, Nantes would never get better.

But yesterday, when Nantes finally announced the coaching change, I ironically felt even less trust in them. Why?

Because this coaching change at Nantes is really chaotic and messy behind the scenes.

First, actually the Nantes owner decided to change the coach right after the last defeat to Lens.

Because this match against Angers is extremely important,Not only is it a derby, but also a crucial six-pointer in the relegation battle.

If they can’t even get points from Angers, who have the lowest budget of only 25 million and theoretically the weakest team in the league, it would be disastrous.

But the reputation of the Nantes owner, the Kita family, is quite notorious in the coaching circle.

Because the Kita family is temperamental, chooses coaches arbitrarily, and lacks patience, since the 21st century,They have already changed head coaches 29 times, ranking first in Ligue 1.

So now Nantes is obviously in total chaos, and which well-known coach would want to jump into this fire pit? Right?

However, surprisingly, even Nantes’ own second team coach, Stéphane Ziani, refused to join the first team coaching staff!

Ziani has been in coaching for 17 years but has never been the head coach of a professional team; the fact he turned down this opportunity shows how undesirable the Nantes head coach position is.

If even an unknown like Ziani is unwilling to take over, others are even less likely to come.

It has been confirmed that Nantes contacted at least three coaches: Stiel, Antonetti, and Lammouchi, but none agreed to come.

Note: These three are all currently unemployed and at a low point in their careers.

Even so, they refused; tell me, isn’t that frightening for Nantes?

Unable to find a willing head coach, the Kita family had to hold their nose and let Castro continue leading the team.

So as you saw,The day before yesterday, Castro held the pre-match press conference and denied any internal issues at Nantes.

But shortly after the conference, he was fired—this denial was quite awkward indeed.

Why was he dismissed?

Because the Kita family finally found someone willing to take over—the Ligue 1 commentator Cantali.

Although Cantali is now a commentator, he used to be a coach.

His first and only head coaching role was in the 23/24 season with Ligue 2 club Valenciennes.

Note, Valenciennes used to be a stable mid-table Ligue 2 team with average squad and budget.

But Cantali managed to get them relegated, finishing far below every other team in last place! That’s quite shocking.

After relegating Valenciennes, basically no one dared to hire him as head coach anymore.

Last year-end, his mentor Comolli coached Nantes and brought him in as assistant for half a year; after Comolli left, he also left and became a commentator for six months.

So this is the head coach we’re talking about,He was only officially appointed yesterday, given just one training session’s timeCan he really fix Nantes’ complete mess and lead the team to bounce back? Only a fantasy novel protagonist could pull that off, right?

Anyway, from what I see, the Nantes players seem quite confused.

These are official training photos released by Nantes; I don’t see any confidence or excitement on the players’ faces. They seem a bit puzzled—shouldn’t Castro have led the final pre-match training? Why the sudden change?

If I were a player, I’d be confused too. Castro had already chosen the lineup, prepared the training, held the press conference, and the match is tomorrow—then suddenly a new coach arrives?

I think Nantes’ situation is abnormal, and I find it hard to believe they can perform normally and fight effectively.

Angers, although the weakest team in Ligue 1 with the poorest squad and lowest budget, have recently gelled well with good results and morale.

Their head coach also announced there are no new injuries, and the lineup will be the same as last match.

So playing at their familiar home ground today, their performance is likely to be stable.

So, can Angers satisfy their fans? What do you think? I’m looking forward to them securing three points!

Alright, for today’s other matches, I will still send you my written insights tonight. If anything is unclear, feel free to ask me. “Watch the game clearly,” see you then!

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