​

A pure Nice product, Andy Pelmard is the perfect candidate to get the coverage going for a match against Marseille. Before the rescheduled match, due to take place on Wednesday at 9pm, the defender could have just done the job with his usual smile, but without getting too involved. His derbies, his mistakes, his return, his evolution: at 20 years old, the France youth international preferred to throw himself in the deep-end and to speak truly from the heart.

Andy, with the benefit of hindsight, what can you take away from this match at Paris?

With a bit of hindsight, I think there was some improvement in our performance, even though we can never be satisfied with a defeat, especially given our current position in the league table. There were still some good things to take away that we will need to reproduce in the very near future.

We saw you put in an excellent battle with Kylian Mbappé...

Against that kind of opponent, it's difficult to dictate the play. He's a forward that knows what he's doing and is full of confidence. It was down to me to follow him. In the duels, I tried to close the space and to always be there. I needed to be more focused on the details, but I approached the match like any other, even though I was playing at a different level. I tried to do what I could to help the team. What I want more than anything is to be effective for the team.

We've seen you play in the middle, on the left, but rarely on the right. How do you feel in this position?

In the first match against Paris, I had already moved across to the right during the match in the second half. It's not my natural position but my versatility allows me to play there today. I can only be proud about that. Playing on the right or through the middle, it's similar, there are just the physical aspects and effort that aren't the same. Then again, playing on the right is a bit different for me, because the coach asks me to tuck in when we attack and not to push forward like Youcef or Jordan, even though that's something I like to do. So in the end, the role is similar to the one I have when playing through the middle.

How would you rate the first part of your season individually?

I have done some good things and others not so good. What I am saying is very broad, but it's a good reflection of how I am feeling. The impression that I take away is that I still have a lot to learn, which is to be expected because I am still young. I am trying to do so every day. Even when I wasn't on the pitch, I tried to see what I could take away from this period. Making mistakes is never pleasant, but you have to experience it in order to stop making the same mistakes. In the end, it's a necessary evil.

"Previously I thought myself to be a ball player, now I am a defender"

How did you get through this period?

When you are in that kind of period, either you blame everybody else and you say to yourself that you are not at fault, that what is happening isn't fair; or you pick yourself up, you listen, you put yourself in the coach's shoes and you try to understand what you need to do in order to meet his expectations. Even though it wasn't easy, I chose the second option. So in the end, this first part of the season is more positive than negative. But there is still a lot of work to do.

Did you ever doubt yourself?

I don't know everything, but I I didn't doubt myself, because I haven't arrived where I am today by chance. However I knew that I had things to work on in order to be able to get back onto the pitch and meet the coach's expectations.

What were they?

In my case, it's more a question of attitude. I am naturally nice, so I had to work on my 'nasty' side and my agression. At the moment, I don't feel different, but I can focus on other aspects of my game that I previously considered to be less important.

Can you build on that?

Before I thought myself to be a ball player. Now I am more of a defender. These are things that get the coach's attention. He prefers having a real defender who he can rely on rather than a technical player who he doesn't have full confidence in. I really enjoy playing with the ball, I also need to learn to do so without the ball. I have just made a change in my head, it's not really something that I have worked on because duels, the contact and the defensive phase of play, I'm used to that. It's just a change of mentality.

"That penalty still runs through my mind"

On a sporting level, a match between Marseille and Nice, what does that mean for you?

First of all, we need to win this match, like we need to win all other matches. Then, you need to win it because it's a derby. And for me, there is an added personal incentive because I know that in the last derby that I played, I gave away a penalty at the end (in the 73rd minute of a match that Le Gym lost 2-1 at the Allianz Riviera on 28 August 2019, Editor's note). I need to make amends for that foul.

Does that penalty still run through your mind?

Yes. More than anything, I remember the defeat, it was one of my first matches and honestly, I was sad after that penalty. It wasn't deliberate, it was a mistake. Not a mistake due to youth but just a mistake. And it still runs through my head, because it's always sad to lose a match as important as this one in that way.

What memories do you have of matches against Marseille when you were with the youth team?

My first match for the academy was a Marseille – Nice and I played at left back. As a pro, my first Nice – Marseille was also at left-back. At the academy, we are used to playing OM. At U15, the first match that I played as a centre back was also against Marseille. Before that, I was a forward and Coach Bistarelli gambled a little. In the end, it worked out well.

"We will need to be at our best mentally"

What changes as a pro?

It's another dimension, another level of passion. At the moment, the pandemic makes everything more difficult, especially in terms of the fans, but a derby always attracts lots of people. Everyone wants to see it and I hope we can make Les Niçois happy, even if it's in front of their screens.

What will be the key things in order to go and get something from the match?

We will need to continue doing what we are doing, I think that can only get better because we are in good shape, despite the defeat at Paris. We will have some good players up against us, who will be on their game. The context is special and we will need to be at our best mentally. Everything starts from there.

Le Gym haven't won in Marseille since November 2015 (1-0, goal from Germain). As a Niçois, does that mean something?

Yes. Because I remember the very last Marseille – Nice. I was on the bench, it's was a hard one to take, especially after a goal from someone who was here before (1-0 defeat, goal from Mario Balotelli on 10 March 2019). From that point of view too, there is revenge to be had.

---