Football: in National 3, Gardois with their eyes in the rearview mirror… and their sights

In Montpellier, Makan Traoré and Alès will have to be as incisive as they were against OM. MIDI LIBRE – ARCHIVES ALEXIS BETHUNE

At the dawn of this 10th day of N3, Alès and Beaucaire are looking upwards, Aigues-Mortes wants to get out of the bottom.

Remaining, for Beaucaire, at the top of the table or getting close to it, in the case of Alès, such is the objective of the Stade against Corte and of the OAC against the Montpellier reserve. As for Aigues-Mortes, a win at Ardziv could get them out of the red zone.

The 10th day and the ranking of group J

Beaucaire: Don't make a mistake twice

If you miss just one player, everything is depopulated… So, imagine when three starters are missing, all attackers. Last Saturday, against Sud FC (1-2), Beaucaire paid a high price for the absence of its attacking trio, deprived of Bouraja (on the bench, came on), Makala (suspended) and Vilouka (pubalgia).

In all competitions, the trio has scored 52% of the Stade goals (12 out of 23) since the start of the season. ''When your best players aren't there, yes, of course, it's impactful, but you have to be able to do things without them. And it is clear that this is not the case'', laments coach Sofyan Carletta.

For the reception of Corte, if Bouraja is in the group, Vilouka is still unavailable –''He will be out until the break'', notes assistant Xavier Mouret. What about Makala, who left for a trial in Lausanne (Swiss D1) this week ? ''He will be there'', Mouret points out.

With the help of its striker, Beaucaire will have a match to win against Corte, a low-ranked team that may have its mind set on the Coupe de France and its 32nd against OGC Nice. ''Their president told me that this Cup bothered him a little because they weren't playing at their level in N3', notes Xavier Mouret.

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Beaucaire (4th, 14 points) hosts Corte (13th, 7 points), this Saturday at 2:30 p.m., Philibert-Schneider stadium.

Alès: “remontada” operation

This season, Alès' goal is to move up to N2. After eight matches, OAC, beaten in the first two days, remains in ambush of the top 5. ''Until we play our delayed match (against Cannet, on December 21, Editor's note), the matches against Montpellier and Sud FC should allow us to stay in touch with the teams at the top of the table'', says coach Hakim Malek.

Small problem: until now, Alès has been as impressive up front (20 goals scored) as it has been porous at the back (16 goals conceded). In this defensive sector, the arrival this week of Yohan Mollo, 35 (172 L1 matches), should stabilize the structure. ''After analyzing our defensive and leadership problems on the defensive line, we had to find a guy who can play both roles. Yohan can be a command leader'', Malek analyzes.

Alès (6th, 12 points) plays in Montpellier against the MHSC reserve team (9th, 11 points), this Saturday at 6 p.m., at the Bernard-Gasset stadium.

Aigues-Mortes: a good move to play

After its 1-0 victory against Cannet-Rocheville, Aigues-Mortes has left the red zone. For six days. The time for Beaucaire to revive Sud FC in a late match (Stade's defeat, 1-2).

On the pitch, however, against Cannet, USSA was less out, showing itself to be less playful than usual. ''It's the least accomplished match we've played in terms of play, but we're taking points. That's a bit of a priority'', analyses coach Yohan Borg.

In Ardziv, in this duel between relegation teams, Aigues-Mortes will have ''arguments to put forward, Borg says. It won't be an easy trip because they are a team a little more experienced than us in N3 but I think there are still points to go for''.

Aigues-Mortes (11th, 9 points) plays at Ardziv (12th, 9 points), Sunday at 3 p.m. I subscribe to read the rest