No big names on the St. Etienne roster during the summer transfer window, with the arrivals of the Swiss midfielder Fernandes Gelson from Manchester City (17 matches – 1 goal), goalkeeper Vincent Planté, who had his glory days at Cannes from 1999 to 2003 before moving to Caen, and Bakary Sako from Châteauroux (35 matches – 8 goals). Other recruits being targeted by the Greens include Youssouf Hadji (Nancy), Aruna Dindane (Lens), and Boubacar Sanogo (Werder Bremen), but for now, these acquisitions remain at the rumor stage. On the friendly match front, Saint-Etienne just lost their last two meetings by the same score of 1-0 against Sochaux and Marseille, but had more success against Rennes (2-1), Grenoble (3-1), and against Dinamo Bucharest (2-0), while the matches against Monaco and Clermont ended in goalless draws. Alain Perrin, the St. Etienne coach, says he is “satisfied and worried” by his team’s preparation, aiming for a European spot by the end of the season.
On the Nice side, recruitment seems to be wrapped up, although the former Auxerre player, Olivier Kapo, might well join the squad led by the new Nice coach, Didier Ollé-Nicolle. The friendly matches have been quite encouraging for the red and black staff with two fine victories against the Italians of Genoa (3-0) and against Clermont Foot (2-1), and a good draw against RC Lens (0-0). The high morale on the pitch almost makes one forget the hesitations in the shareholders’ camp. Also a great satisfaction with a happy ending to the summer’s saga around Loïc Remy who, in the end, will not join Lyon despite the allure of Lyon’s calls, and who will join the French national team again for the match against the Faroe Islands, next Wednesday, August 12. Hence, the new Nice coach can rely on a quality squad to form his first team of the season.
The appointment is set for this Saturday, August 8, at 9 PM, at the Geoffroy Guichard Stadium, and all Nice supporters are hoping that the seasons continue alike, and that the outcome will be identical to last season’s, where Nice had won on St. Etienne ground thanks to a goal from the courageous captain of OGC Nice, Olivier Echouafni.
