Speaking to the press, Francesco Farioli reflected on Le Gym's 0-0 draw with Brest on Sunday afternoon. Satisfied with his team's performance, the Italian coach believes the result was a fair one.

Coach, was it a fair draw?

It's a good result, a good performance from the whole team with a lot of character and physical effort. We knew it was going to be a very difficult game, but our boys were able to limit the attacking threat of Brest, who have the third-best attack in the league. We managed to block their full-backs, who are real assets for them. We even had some interesting opportunities in the first half with some good team moves. I'm thinking of the moves with Jordan Lotomba and Evann Guessand, which almost broke the deadlock. In a match like this, there are different phases and the team interpreted some of them well, with maturity. Congratulations to all twenty-two players.

Can you reflect on the first 20 minutes? Was it because of the change of system that you played so well?

I don't agree that we don't often play like we did today. The difference is our opponents. Today, we had a team in front of us that came at us aggressively. That opens up space and allows us to play more direct football. Perhaps from the outside, for the fans or the journalists, it looked like we were playing faster, but in reality, what changed was not our approach but the way our opponents played. When you play against teams who play a 4-4-2 formation with eleven players in their half in a defensive phase, it's not the same. The first 20-25 minutes allowed us to play more direct, but that's due to the type of match we had to play. I'm pleased with this game, the boys have learnt to adopt this new system in a very short space of time. We were able to find new passing lanes. Brest played an open style and that allowed us to play more direct combinations.

Before the game, you were full of praise for Brest. Did this match make you realise that this team isn't where they are by chance?

If there's one thing I said in the pre-match press conference that was right, it was that. The compliments I paid Brest before the match I can confirm and even double. They're a team with a lot of movement, courage, a philosophy of play and organisation, players who are in exceptional form and who can give you problems at any moment. It's a good result for us. After the match, coach Eric Roy and I spoke. We said to each other that it was a great match and that the result was fair. I think that's the most objective analysis.

Why did you change your system for this match? Was it a way of being less predictable in the tactical battle with Eric Roy?

It's a change I made for this match, to have passing lanes that help our players find solutions. At times, it led to some superb moves. This system could be used again in the future, maybe in the next match, we'll see. The important thing for us is to have several strings to our bow. The boys were able to absorb the change of system in a very short space of time. They played a very focused match, both with and without the ball.

What can you tell us about the Dante-Youssouf-Todibo trio, because it looked like nothing could trouble them today...

They're three very important players for us, they bring us so much. They were very strong today against a team that is perhaps the most physical in the league and certainly the strongest in aerial duels. They're a very mobile team, with three midfielders, especially Lees-Melou, who can play anywhere, and a Camara who goes in search of balls and attacks space. But I'd also like to praise our players up front, Gaëtan Laborde and Evann Guessand, who played a match ... I don't have the words to describe it. Overall, it was a nice boxing match and a fair draw.

On Wednesday you face Montpellier in the last 16 of the Coupe de France. Are you planning to rotate your players?

On Wednesday, we'll go to Montpellier with what I consider to be our best eleven players. We want to go as far as possible in this competition, so we'll take it game by game with the best players available. We'll do everything we can.