During the 5th day of the Europa League, FC Nantes snatched victory against Qarabag (2-1) on Thursday. This success allows Nantes to stay in the running for a qualification in the play-offs.
Ludovic Blas carried the Canaries.
Convicted of winning to hope to qualify for the play-offs, FC Nantes did the job by beating Qarabag (2-1) on Thursday. But the least we can say is that the victory was won in pain!
Indeed, the Canaries were dominated at the start of the game. Without Lafont’s important saves in front of Owusu and Kady, Qarabag would have opened the scoring quickly and logically.
A gift for Nantes
Fortunately for Nantes, goalkeeper Magomedaliyev completely missed his recovery and allowed Blas (1-0, 16th) to score against the run of play! The start of another match since the men of Kombouar, pushed by a great atmosphere at Beaujoire, finally entered their match.
Their runs were sharper and the locals were not far from 2-0 on the volley from Blas, or on the overly applied shot from Moutoussamy. On the other side, Qarabag had taken a blow to the head with his porter’s pellet. But his striker Owusu nevertheless forced Lafont to intervene twice to maintain this advantage at the break. We suspected that Nantes would have to resist the opposing assaults in the second period.
Savior Ganago!
Confirmation after returning from the locker room when Qarabag obtained a disputed penalty and concluded by Ozobic (1-1, 56th). The meeting then began to turn against Nantes, saved by the post on the super powerful free kick from Kady! The kind of sign that does not deceive… Because in additional time, the incoming Ganago (2-1, 90th + 4) ended up delivering the Canaries, still in the race for qualification in the dams!
The score of the match: 7/10
While they only needed a draw, the Qarabag players played the game. We therefore witnessed an open match with a lot of chances on both sides. Under an atmosphere ball, the Canaries were sought for victory at the end of the suspense. A real European Cup match.
The goals :
– On a missed raise from goalkeeper Magomedaliyev full axis, Chirivella serves Blas just in front of him with a touch of the ball. The attacking midfielder, without control, places his ball perfectly on the right of the goalkeeper (1-0, 16th).
– From the penalty spot, Ozobic hits halfway up the center and deceives Lafont, who started on his right (1-1, 56th).
– On a short cross from Castelletto at the near post, Ganago manages to control, shift his ball to the outside and find the post coming in at a tight angle! (2-1, 90th+4)
The NOTES of the people of Nantes
Maxifoot has assigned a score (out of 10) comments on each player.
Man of the match: Ludovic Blas (8/10)
Well helped by the opposing goalkeeper and his passer Chirivella on his goal, the playmaker of the Canaries is the author of a great performance! Legaucher tried his luck at every opportunity and would have scored a nice double if the Azerbaijani goalkeeper had not caught up. In addition to his strikes, he had fun with inspired dribbling, the image of his stepovers which left Richard Almeida on the buttocks!
NANTES :
Alban Lafont (8): we would almost be tempted to elect a second man of the match as the Nantes goalkeeper was decisive in this victory. Blas lit up the game, Ganago scored the goal in added time, but the last bastion, only beaten from the penalty spot, was almost imperial! He imposed himself perfectly on the attempts of Owusu and Kady. Admittedly, he was also lucky when his post repelled Kady’s free kick.
Sbastien Corchia (4): because of Guessand’s defensive omissions, the right side suffered a lot from the overflows of Zoubir and Bayramov. He was nonetheless interesting on the ball, with good transmissions forward for Blas and Guessand. Replace the 67th by Moussa Sissoko (not not)whose rediscovered legs allowed Nantes to push at the end of the game.
Jean-Charles Castelletto (7.5): while Girotto was in difficulty, the former Brestois did the job. We have seen him carry out authoritarian interventions à la Pallois, like his tackle on Bayramov. In addition to his won duels, especially in the area, the central defender gave the decisive pass to striker Ganago.
Andrei Girotto (3): expected as the boss of this defense in the absence of Pallois mnag, the Brazilian missed out on his match. He certainly managed two rescues, one of which could have turned into a csc. But his lost balls put his team in great danger! Not to mention his foul on Owusu which would surely have earned him a red card if Merlin had not returned to his side.
Quentin Merlin (2): despite the good crosses distributed, the left side has not managed to forget his difficulties on the defensive level. Vesovic and Kady took over several times and without too much difficulty. But above all, his loss of the ball leads to the equalizing penalty.
Samuel Moutoussamy (7): these European Cup matches suit him perfectly! His energy in recovery and his volume of play made him essential on Thursday. He also applied himself technically in his passes and crosses. We can simply blame him for his too axial strike in the first period. Replace the 79th with the goalscorer Ignatius Ganago (not not)author of a beautiful sequence in closed angle!
Evann Guessand (3.5): in addition to his lost balls, the former Niois tended to forget his defensive withdrawal at the start of the match. He recovered over the minutes. But despite a good center which almost led to an Azri csc, his offensive contribution was insufficient. Replace the 67th by Dennis Appiah (not)valuable on a defensive intervention that it was better not to miss at the end of the match.
Chirivella (7.5): like his decisive pass for Blas, the Spanish midfielder has shown accuracy in everything he has undertaken. He was able to direct the game with a minimum of ball touches, hence his ability to accelerate the game on the counter-attack. Replace the 88th by Marcus Coco (not not).
Ludovic Blas (8): see comments above.
Kader Bamba (7): rarely established, the Nantes winger scored points. He never hesitated to strike the ball at the foot and did not spare himself in the defensive withdrawal either. Inspired, he managed good exchanges with the side Merlin. Replace the 67th by Moses Simon (not not)who hit hard on his left lane, which Beaujoire really appreciated.
Mostafa Mohamed (4): able to win a few aerial duels, the Egyptian striker still made an insufficient copy. Apart from his sequence at the end of the match, with his volley above, his technical waste is still too great for a player supposed to relieve his team.
+ Find the results and the classification of the Europa League on Maxifoot
And for you, who were the best and worst players of the match? Comment in the “comments” box below!
NANTES 2-1 QARABAG (mid-time: 1-0) – EUROPA LEAGUE – Group G (Nantes) / 5th day
Stadium: Stade de la Beaujoire, Nantes – Referee: Jakob Kehlet, Denmark
Goals : L. Blas (17th) I. Ganago (90+5th) for NANTES – F. Ozobic (56th, pen.) for QARABAG
Warnings :
NANTES :
QARABAG :
Blas congratulates for his fine goal (1-0, 16th)
Ozobic took Lafont against the penalty spot (1-1, 56th)
Scorer the 94th, Ganago offered the victory to the FCN
