The party lasted after the victorious play-offs against Rennes in 1992. – Jean-Philippe KSIAZEK, Christophe SIMON / AFP
- RC Strasbourg is playing its survival in Ligue 1, Sunday evening against Lorient.
- Does the Alsatian club know how to manage these choppy matches? You have to go back to your past to answer the question.
- We have selected five games with a stake at least as strong, all having taken place during play-offs or final days of the championship.
Alsace holds its breath. This Sunday evening, RC Strasbourg is playing its place in Ligue 1 against Lorient. In the event of defeat and good results from Nantes and Brest, the future of the Bas-Rhin club in the top flight could be threatened. A cleaver match on a last day of the championship, Racing has already played several in the past. Sometimes with happiness, sometimes much less… Little refresh of memory!
2013: The craziest
It is the founding act of the revival of the Strasbourg club. Two years after his administrative relegation to the fifth division (CFA 2 at the time), he is back at the gates of the National. There is even only one step to take: beat the leader Raon-l’Etape and steal the only entry ticket from him. Scheduled for May 26, the meeting is postponed to June 2 and moved to Epinal for security reasons. “Contrary to what the Raonnais think, it did not suit us”, explains to 20 minutes the coach of the time, François Keller. “If we had played a week earlier, I was sure of our victory. We were coming too far back to crash. But this extra week put me in doubt. »That his players quickly lifted thanks to a goal from Benedick (0-1, 41st) then another from Amofa (68th). Before an ultimate adrenaline rush for the last ten minutes of anthology. “When I put the third in the 88th when I had just entered, it was madness !, remembers David Ledy. But it also became stressful. “Because the Vosges came back to 3-1 then 3-2 in stride. For stoppage of play under high tension where the Alsatians did not control anything at all. “It was Fort Knox, we swung whatever came,” Keller continues, even remembering an opposing occasion. “Fortunately, it came close to the post. “
2009: The most traumatic
La Mosson remains, even today, a cursed stadium in the imagination of many Alsatian supporters. The trauma dates back to May 29, 2009, for the last day of Ligue 2. “We only needed a draw to go up and they had to win” replaces the decor Guillaume Lacour. The former midfielder remembers having left there “several days before” in order to prepare for this accession final. It did not prevent a real sinking in the first period, with two goals conceded in less than twenty minutes (2-0, 19th). “We then missed a penalty [par Cohade] and maybe that would have changed something… ”Because Racing had reduced the gap to 2-1, thanks to Kandia Traoré (2-1, 45th + 4) and had the opportunity to pick up. As on heavy this strike in the last seconds of… Lacour. But she had been countered! “For me, this game is always difficult to talk about. I turned the page but talking about it brings out memories. Not the best, far from it.
2010: The most “deserved”
A year after having come close to returning to the elite, Racing finds itself on the brink of the abyss. Very close to leaving the professional world for the National. Here again, this chopper match is played against an opponent concerned by the same fight, Châteauroux. “I was still the youngest in the team but I remember a huge pressure,” rewinds David Ledy, who entered the game on May 14, 2010 before “having his head cut open! “. And to see his team lose 2-1 on a brace from Baby. “The season had been very complicated with many changes (Janin in place of Gress), the club buyout … It had not helped us and I think that this last match had been the image of all that”, summarizes Guillaume Lacour.
1992: The most “vintage”
The most picky will remember another barrage of accession to Division 1. Lost badly (6-0) in 1990 in Nice after however a 3-1 success in the first leg thanks to a double from a certain Youtri Djorkaeff. But if we go back a little in the annals of the Strasbourg club, it is indeed another part which marked the spirits. Facing Rennes at La Meinau, with a magical gesture, this victorious strike of nearly 40 meters from Stephen Keshi. On May 13, 1992, Frank Leboeuf, José Cobos, Marc Keller, Olivier Dall’Oglio and Yvon Pouliquen wore the blue jersey. “The stadium was full, the atmosphere magnificent and his shooting exceptional”, still relishes today the last named by quickly evoking the party which had followed. “It had lasted at least a week! “At the height of this 4-1 victory synonymous with promotion in the elite.
2017: Most recent
Finally, no need to go back so far to find the trace of a Strasbourg team which is playing its life on a match. Thierry Laurey was already the coach, and Aholou and Liénard already under his orders. For – and some may see it as a sign for this Sunday – a positive result on arrival. Facing Bourg-Péronnas on May 19, 2017, Racing had validated its rise to Ligue 1. Not without trembling. “When they came back to 2-1 in the 75th minute, I remember that big cold snap at the Meinau … It was super stressful and thrilling,” recalls Jérémy Grimm, who then took part in the big evening on site. Sunday, curfew requires, it will not take place. Whatever happens.
How to prepare for a cleaver match?
This question was put to all of our interlocutors. Often with the same answer: “Of course you have to be ready physically, but above all mentally”, sums up Jérémy Grimm. “Because it is above all the best mentally prepared team that will bear the emotional load the best. The worst is to play the game in your head before, ”adds Guillaume Lacour. “If fear takes over, we go through it”, adds David Ledy without denying that it is difficult to ignore it. “You have to know how to manage your stress”, summarizes Jérémy Grimm. Another subject often mentioned in these moments, the dynamics, positive or negative, of the teams. But does it matter once the kick-off has been given? Guillaume Lacour does not believe it. “All it takes is a goal in the first 5 minutes and the momentum can quickly reverse. “For Sunday against Lorient, Racing is warned.