Team Focus: Have Evian Got the Bottle to Stay in Ligue 1?

During their first ever season in Ligue 1 it is fair to say that Evian Thonon Gaillard have gone through the varying motions of success and failure. The recent 3-1 defeat at Dijon was probably their worst performance but the stunning 4-2 win over Montpellier showed they have what it takes to stay in this division.

Out of the three newly promoted teams it looks increasingly clear that ETG have the will and mentality to stay in this division for a few years to come. The biggest shock this season came at the start of the winter break. The club announced that Coach Bernard Casoni would not have his contract extended at the end of the season. A pretty unexpected move, with the club sitting in 11th, it seemed a strange time to announce this to the public.

The next move was even more surprising. Only a matter of days later Casoni and Evian released a statement announcing his departure from the club:

"Given the news that came out about the non-extension of Bernard Casoni's contract beyond the end of the current season, it was decided with his agreement to free him from the final few months of his contract."

The former Marseille defender that had led ETG from the Championnat National to Ligue 1 in two seasons was diplomatic in his departure:

"I decided to leave with a positive record. I'd like to thank ETG for the sporting adventure I had here and the confidence they placed in me."

A strange move with Evian playing some excellent football with a well organised defence; this decision would surely make or break their season. The new man would need to be a proven Ligue 1 coach, able to come in and put his stamp on the team instantly. That man would be Uruguayan coach Pablo Correa.

At the end of last season Correa had left AS Nancy after nine years of service, and although he did guide them to a 4th place finish and brought European football to the Stade Marcel Picot, the end of his tenure saw Nancy stagnate and become a very pedestrian club, strong enough to stay in the top flight but no danger to the clubs ahead of them. It was a smart but interesting appointment.

Fast forward to Correa’s second month in charge and the club seems to be back on track. Although they were knocked out of the Coupe de France by Rennes in an exciting 3-2 defeat, it was against league leaders PSG that Evian showed that they would be difficult to beat and definitely no pushovers in this division under Correa.

The former manager had set Evian up in a tightly organised, fluid system. Without the ball there were always two clear banks of four; with minimal space between the defence and midfield it made it very hard for teams like Lille and Montpellier to break down. Taking away the space from the creative talents then gave them a platform to launch a series of counter attacks, hitting teams on the break. The 4-2 win over Montpellier was the perfect example of Casoni’s tactic working to perfection.

Now under the guidance of Correa, the defensive tactic has changed slightly but going forward they still look to hit on the counter, just with a little bit more width and support for young striker Yannick Sagbo.

The back four has been the one constant so far. The centre-back duo of Cédric Cambon and Aldo Angoula have played 40 games between them this season and the powerful partnership has provided a solidity at the back and a threat going forward. Defensively they have combined for 113 clearances and 368 interceptions. Contrast that to a team like Stoke City, known for their defensive attributes, their partnership of Robert Huth and Ryan Shawcross have 484 clearances but only 63 interceptions. Those numbers show the different way in which French and English teams defend and how their opponents attack.

Cambon and Angoula not only possess an aerial threat that has wielded three goals, but their style is more centred on anticipation rather than reaction. On either side, Evian can boast two impressive full-backs; the experienced Fabrice Ehret on the left and the very exciting 21-year old Brice Dja Djedjé.

This season Dja Djedjé came into the league as a virtual unknown; 22 games later and he is one of Ligue 1’s more exciting prospects. Quite small, but very stocky, he is quick to react to most situations and his positioning is very good. On only nine occasions this season has an opposing player managed to successfully get past Dja Djedjé, and add this to his average of only conceding 0.8 fouls a game and you have a base of skills for a potentially excellent full-back.

Evian are not a team that rely on individual skills to move the ball forward, which is evident with Dja Djedjé leading the team in successful dribbles with 17 in total - less than one per game. Going forward the defender is very willing but has plenty to improve upon. His final ball could be much better and his desire and belief to beat the opposing full-back needs to improve in order to help him add to his one goal and one assist this season.

The youngster’s desire to help going forward has really helped in Correa’s change to a 4-3-3 formation. Without the ball it is very much a 4-5-1 with three more defensive minded midfielders in Christian Poulsen, Olivier Sorlin and either Eric Tie Bi or Mohammed Rabiu. However, the creativity comes from the wings. Sidney Govou usually starts on the right, but his natural instincts are to come inside to create and this is where Dja Djedjé pushes forward and adds width to the attack.

Although Evian are still without a league win under new boss Pablo Correa, there were signs at the Parc des Princes this weekend that the team are going in the right direction (Match Centre). They took the lead just before half-time and looked to be very well organised and hard to break down. It took a slightly controversial goal from Nene to bring the scores level and then PSG took control and eventually ran out 3-1 winners. Correa needs to take the positives from the performance and help to build on the talents he already has at the club.

Against PSG they had 48% of possession. This is against a club that boasts Jeremy Menez, Mathieu Bodmer and Thiago Motta in midfield. They had 9 corners during the match, from one of which they scored the opener. They had 15 shots – one more than PSG – and Govou had an excellent chance in the second half, only to be met by the goalkeeping excellence of Salvatore Sirigu.

At the full time whistle the PSG fans were relieved to have picked up the three points, they knew it could have been much much different. The travelling Evian fans would have travelled back to Haute-Savoie proud of their players and hopefully knowing their club is going in the right direction.

Ligue 1’s relegation battle will undoubtedly go all the way until the end of the season. Only five points separate the bottom ten teams and it is very unlikely that Evian will be able to climb away from the relegation dogfight, but there is no doubt that under Pablo Correa they have the ability and the mentality to remain in the top division.