Here is Francesco Farioli's analysis at the press conference following Le Gym's 1-1 draw at Lorient.

You've just lost two points...

I'd say it was more a ball lost than two points lost, because in my opinion we played an extraordinary game with a lot of control and confidence, and a determination not to concede anything to a team that we knew was very good at covering spaces and incredibly good in transition. There was one unlucky moment, but I'm only sorry because today the team deserved to take home the 3 points.

One of the positive things was the reaction of support from the players after Youssouf's mistake...

That was one of the good things about today. As I said before, in the type of game we play, mistakes are bound to happen. The reaction of all his team-mates was a team reaction. A great team. It was an important sign. These points lost on the road in pain must give us great strength and great awareness. We have to be able to do that. As for Youssouf, there's one thing I'd like to add, because obviously everyone's looking at the mistake he made, but you have to look at his performance as a whole. He gave us fantastic balance and covered an enormous amount of ground. He handled 99% of the balls he had at his feet well. Despite the mistake, he played an excellent game. That's probably why the rest of the team were so grateful to him.

You have drawn 2 games so far. Is that encouraging in terms of what the team is trying to achieve?

They're two different games. The point we took against Lille gave us the impression that we were a team capable of suffering and being very aggressive in winning the ball back. I think that today we played a game that adds another important stage to our journey. We were able to manage the ball very well, we showed a great ability to play in small spaces, an incredible reaction to losing the ball and an ability to recover it very quickly. It was perhaps one of the first games in which we managed to play in our opponents' half with a lot of control and order. There's still room for improvement. A little patience. I think it's a step forward in our journey.

What is your reaction to the Guessand incident in the first half?

I found myself with a torn boot in my hands, split in two. I think it was pretty clear. But there's nothing to comment on. All I can say is that I found myself with a boot split in two in my hands.

 

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