Video. “If I stay here, I'm going to be unpleasant, I'm even going to be mean”: the anger of Nantais Kombouaré towards journalists

L’entraîneur nantais Antoine Kombouaré a refusé de parler avec les journalistes, ce jeudi pour l’entraînement de reprise. MAXPPP – DAVID CHAPET

Angry, coach Antoine Kombouaré cuts the press conference short. And harshly attacks the media.

Angry at the journalists who have speculated for several weeks about his future at the head of FC Nantes, Antoine Kombouaré cut short, Thursday, the press conference before the Ligue 1 return match in Lille, Saturday. Very tense but also clearly moved, the technician stayed less than three minutes in front of the press, for a long monologue, before getting up and leaving the press room of the Jonelière center.

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“You wrote a lot of things, I didn't take them into account because it was a difficult situation, for the club for me, so it was normal, given the results we had”, he said about the first articles reporting threats to his position, after the defeat (0-2) at home against Le Havre at the end of November.

A persistent grudge

The Nantes management then contacted the entourage of Sergio Conceiçao, who had already been through Beaujoire, but who ultimately refused the position to join AC Milan on December 30. An agreement in principle was then reached with Habib Beye but, faced with the latter's difficulty in putting together a complete staff, Nantes finally made an about-face and chose to continue with Kombouaré at the restart.

After weeks of tension, the Kanak harshly attacked the press, which he said had taken his departure for granted. “I made a decision today, so that you journalists can question yourselves, you're not going to agree, but I don't really care about that”, he began. “What bothers me is that you were all, all, unanimous, and above all categorical, on the fact that today I will no longer be the coach of FC Nantes”, he affirmed.

You are going to act as if I am not there

“You made a mistake, and afterwards, it cannot happen like this, without consequences”, he judged again, explaining that he had waited in vain for a written mea culpa or a “phone call, at least to apologize, to less to explain”. “If I stay here, I'm telling you, I'm going to be unpleasant, I'm even going to be mean, but I don't want to be here, today in this press conference”, he argued. “So you're going to act as if I'm not here […] I'll let you work, but I'm simply leaving”, he concluded before getting up and leaving.