Gym coach Franck Haise spoke after the first pre-season match of the summer against Lausanne (2-2). 

How did the first game go? 
For the first pre-season game, we saw 22 players share the two halves, with quality in certain phases, particularly going forward, getting the ball out and creating goal-scoring opportunities. We didn't score them all, but we did score two good ones. There were some very consistent defensive moves, but less so as the match wore on. Unfortunately, we gave away a couple of chances at the end, from crosses and set-pieces. It's a bit of a shame because you have to try and win the games you can win. We had to win this one. But I'm not forgetting either that there's a 4-week gap between the two teams in terms of preparation. They're coming to the end of their preparation while we're on our 8th day. We did 12 sessions, but of those 12 sessions, 4 of them allowed us to really work on the principles of the game, so I think that for a first, it's obviously not perfect, far from it, that wasn't the aim, but it was rather encouraging. 

How did you find your players? 
Every time, we got off to a good start. Overall, we had a pretty good first half. We were leading 2-0 right up until the break in the second half, so we did pretty well. We had more trouble finishing, especially in the second half. The lines opened up a bit too much, on both sides but particularly on ours, even if it wasn't through transitions that we got the goals. By the time we'd finished playing, it was very hot. After all, we've had quite a few sessions over the last 8 days, so it's normal that we're lacking a bit of freshness. It's totally linked. That goes some way to explaining why we got caught out.

How are your preparations going, bearing in mind that you've got a team-building camp this weekend and then a trip to Austria for another camp?
It's going well. We're working well. What's more, after the game, the players all had some extra work to do, to tell themselves that, even though we only played 45 minutes, we could have done a bit more, because we'll soon be playing more full matches. In any case, our preparations are going well and we're working hard. We'll get Youssouf back in the next few days. Hopefully next week. Maybe Tanguy too, at least for some of the team sessions. Things are progressing. We also know that we're in a transfer period. Even if it's not very open at the moment, for the reasons we know, players will certainly arrive and others will also leave. I'm happy to be working with those who are here and those who are here are working well. 

A few words about the club's 120th anniversary celebrations and your meeting with the fans? 
We'd already met them at the first training session. I spent a good half-hour at the end signing autographs. I couldn't get through to everyone because there were 800 people there. I did 300 or 400, but I had a meeting afterwards and a few photos for the club, but that meeting with the fans was already a nice moment. Yesterday was a very special moment because it was the club's 120th anniversary. These are important times. We were in a place that I was just discovering and which was just magnificent (La Colline du Château, editor's note). The club's 120th anniversary, meeting the supporters, the former players too - because it was they, among others, who built the club - and a magnificent venue: it all created a great occasion. 

Are you looking forward to seeing the fans in action?
Yes, I'm looking forward to the first game at home, but before that, we need to work hard so that we're ready for the first game at home (against Toulouse on the weekend of 25th August). But we've already got our first away game, at Auxerre (L1 Match day 1, weekend of 18th August), so we've got time to work. I'm pretty positive about what I've seen today, because I know there were a lot of good things for a first match, with a lot of changes. I hope that bodes well for the future. We've put in a lot of hard work and we're going to continue to do so. I can't wait to move forward, but let's take our time.

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