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Nimes' important right back returns to the squad

Both teams have been eliminated from the League Cup during the week. Toulouse lost only after the 7-meter-throw shootout

Nimes have won only one point in the league and have been eliminated from the Cup in just short of one month from the start of the season. The returnees to the French top flight have displayed some good performances, such as in the away match against Tremblay (27-27) or the second half of the league clash against St. Raphael, where they came back after a nine-goal deficit and played the end of the match on a par with St. Raphael. But they did have one slip-up though, and it was the home defeat to Cesson. They had expected to win that match but failed, scoring only 22 goals after their terrible goal-scoring conversion. In addition, Cesson goalkeeper was in great form. 

Today they have a game on their hands against one of the rivals they believe they can compete against. It is a very important match in the eve of the away game at Dijon, who took their first points yesterday. After that, they play against stronger teams, Nantes and Dunkerque, both matches in their arena, then they have two successive away games at Selestat and Ivry, followed by the matches against France's finest, PSG and Chambery. Not exactly an ideal schedule, which makes today's match even more important. 


At Tremblay they were behind for the better part of the match, then they turned it all around near the end, had a two-goal lead, but the match ultimately ended with a draw. Right back Damien Waeghe didn't play due to injury, their top shooter Saurina scored only one goal from four attempts, while goalkeeper Idrissi saved only two shots from 11 attempts. Luckily for them, the young Desbonnet is in a good form, as he had 13 saves. They snatched a point and then went to play at St. Raphael in the last 16 round of the League Cup. Saurina didn't play due to his mother's demise, Waeghe returned and showed how important he is for this team, scoring 8 goals from 12 attempts, all from open play. Desbonnet added another 13 saves but the defense, who were unable to find a solution for St. Raphael left back, completely failed. The young man in question had a terrific night, shooting as much as 18 times from open play and scoring 11 of those. Demaille and Djukanovic had 18 saves combined, which meant that Nimes in the end didn't stand a chance. 


Toulouse have also been eliminated but in a far more dramatic way. They played at Nantes and the match ended with a 25-25 draw in regular time. After extra-time the result was 29-29, so they proceeded to the 7-meter-throw shootout, which Nantes won 3-2. 


- I told my players in the locker room that we were eliminated but that we hadn't lost.  It is important for the development of the team. If we use that to beat Nimes, we can say that we have had a great week - said coach Joel Da Silva, and emphasized: 


- I am concerned about the lack of width of the roster. We can't play with just 8 or 9 players all the time. I have to look things through, against Nantes we had problems because our right back has not been giving what had been expected from him. 


This refers to Angel Montor, the Spaniard who came from Barcelona. These are his stats this season: PSG 2/6, Dunkerque 0/4, Nantes 0/2. 


One of the heroes of the clash with Nantes was pivot Miha Zvizeja, who scored five goals from five attempts, all from open play. Goalkeeper Pardin, who had 16 saves, was the other. The goalkeepers have been very good since the start of the season. Last week, in their 25-24 victory over Ivry, Perez had 13 saves, while Pardin added another 4. Zvizej scored yet again five goals, this time from seven attempts.


The lineup that started the game at Nantes is announced for today's match also, which means that Toulouse are going with their heavy artillery and if they repeat their performance from Nantes, winning points will be far from impossible. 

Although the games Nimes play don't end up with many goals, with the exception of the first round 35-33 defeat to St. Raphaël, the fact remains they play very fast handball, with many fast breaks and lots of shots on goal. Last week they played 27-27 vs Tremblay without their important right back Waeghe, then 29-25 vs St. Raphaël without their first left back Saurina. Toulouse improved their defense compared to last season, but they are still not a defense-oriented team, can score a lot vs anyone, and I'm expecting a 55 goal game today. The play-style of both teams is such that this simply must play out.