Ligue 1 Fans Are Given Unprecedented Tv Access – But Only To Old Storylines

An elaborate workout successful model dressing is possibly really to champion picture nan return of Ligue 1 football. With nan league-owned Ligue 1+ taking complete broadcasting duties and pinch a hopeless request to “add value” to nan “product”, location was a sweeping scope of innovations for nan return of top-flight football.

Viewers were treated to France World Cup victor Djibril Sidibé dialling successful from nan Toulouse dressing room pursuing their triumph complete Nice; Nantes head Luís Castro providing a mid-match tactical overview during their conclusion to PSG; images of raucous dressing room celebrations, of pre-match preparations, squad talks, you sanction it. Stadiums go panopticon prisons, and omnipresent cameras erode immoderate enigma that remains successful nan narration betwixt those who play nan athletics and those who watch it.

The “innovations”, by and large, person been good received, and nan spectator acquisition has ne'er felt much privileged, moreover if immoderate players are unsure. Nice defender Jonathan Clauss warned against nan imaginable invasiveness. “It’s still our dressing room. You person to find a happy mediate ground,” said nan France international. But, supra all, these measures person been introduced retired of necessity. In a convention truthful dominated by 1 team, it tin beryllium based on that they are a replacement for, alternatively than a complement to, nan sporting spectacle.

The caller season, only 1 week old, is already repurposing nan aged storylines. PSG and their purported closest challengers, Marseille, some played very overmuch to type. The European champions, pinch conscionable 2 weeks of pre-season nether their belts pursuing their tardy decorativeness to past season, were heavy rotated for their sojourn to Nantes. Ousmane Dembélé, Désiré Doué, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Achraf Hakimi, Nuno Mendes, Marquinhos and Willian Pacho were each connected nan bench.

They huffed and puffed, but yet sewage complete nan statement acknowledgment to a fortuitously deflected Vitinha effort. Even physically diminished, Luis Enrique’s broadside find a measurement successful Ligue 1. With their attraction connected much tantalising trophies, rotation will beryllium nan norm for PSG unless unit tin beryllium applied by their rivals, and location are doubts there.

Marseille, having vanished 2nd past season, and having strengthened pinch nan likes of Angel Gomes, Facundo Medina and Igor Paixão – nan astir costly summertime signing by immoderate French nine barroom PSG this summertime – are nan astir apt to title nan champions’ supremacy. But they, too, struck immoderate acquainted chords successful their opener.

Roberto De Zerbi’s broadside dominated possession but did small pinch it contempt Rennes going down to 10 men connected nan half-hour mark. Marseille had their first changeable connected target successful nan 66th infinitesimal and their deficiency of cutting separator came backmost to wound them successful stoppage time. Ludovic Blas, disconnected nan bench, hit Marseille’s precocious statement and slotted past Geronimo Rulli one-on-one. “We should ne'er beryllium successful a position to concede a extremity for illustration that,” said De Zerbi, who, according to reports successful nan section press, saved his harsher words for nan dressing down, 1 of nan uncommon moments occluded from wide viewership.

Rennes players observe arsenic nan inquest originates for Marseille. Photograph: Jean Catuffe/Getty Images

With tensions reportedly arising betwixt Adrien Rabiot and England younker world Jonathan Rowe successful nan Marseille dressing room, De Zerbi intervened. “The others hit america connected nan pitch, and we travel successful present and conflict among ourselves. You cognize what that means? That we person mini balls. In Marseille, we request to person large ones. This is nan past clip this will happen,” nan Italian could beryllium heard saying successful a reside that pierced done nan walls of Roazhon Park.

The inclination to detonate is ingrained astatine Marseille, moreover embraced. A fewer years agone nan nine named their magma-influenced 3rd kit “volcanic population” – a reference to nan dispute ambiance astatine nan club’s stadium, nan Vélodrome. However, these soul eruptions are inconducive to nan stableness and consistency needed to prolong a existent title challenge.

Threats to quit, week-long retreats successful Rome and reported tensions wrong nan squad defined De Zerbi’s tumultuous if yet successful first play astatine Marseille. But location are degrees of success, and nan opposition to nan unity and serenity that characterised PSG’s 4th consecutive Ligue 1 title only goes to item what Marseille deficiency successful this regard. Juggling European shot won’t thief their efforts to dethrone PSG either, not that nan nonsubjective has been group to do so.

Beyond Marseille, location is Monaco, whose unconvincing 3-1 triumph against Le Havre was 1 of only 2 games that produced much than a azygous goal. “We cannot beryllium satisfied pinch nan performance. We tin do overmuch better,” said Adi Hütter. His squad looks competitory erstwhile again but nan imaginable departure of skipper Denis Zakaria, a target for Al-Ahli, would correspond a large rustle to their ambitions.

Lille look weaker, arsenic evidenced successful their 3-3 tie against Brest, while Nice look to beryllium successful a spot of bother. They mislaid 1-0 to Toulouse and were besides dumped retired of Champions League qualifying aft a 4-0 nonaccomplishment to Benfica. Franck Haise has complained that his squad is not bully capable for nan dual tasks of competing successful nan Europa League this play while besides trying to decorativeness successful nan European places. That overmuch was evident astatine nan weekend.

Once nan novelty of nan innovations and unprecedented entree disposable connected Ligue 1+ wears disconnected – and it will – nan request for caller storylines will go apparent. Few were provided connected nan opening weekend.

Talking points

Paris FC get successful Ligue 1 pinch lofty ambitions, but they were brought quickly crashing backmost down to world successful their opener. Esteban Lepaul, nan awesome logic Angers defied nan likelihood to stay successful nan apical formation past season, scored nan only extremity wrong nan opening 10 minutes. Not moreover a reddish paper for Angers’ Louis Mouton offered Paris FC a way backmost successful what was, by head Stéphane Gilli’s ain admission, a “timid” return to nan apical flight.

Unlike chap promoted sides, Lorient and Metz, who besides suffered constrictive losses connected nan opening day, Paris FC will beryllium capable to move to nan transportation marketplace to remedy nan issues laid bare. Gilli has said location will beryllium much arrivals, including Willem Geubbels, who was touted arsenic nan adjacent large point erstwhile he came done astatine Lyon. Now 24, he has joined from St Gallen and should amended a guardant statement that intelligibly lacks a spot of bite.

Strasbourg enjoyed a winning start, beating section rivals Metz 1-0. They did truthful by becoming nan first squad successful Europe’s apical 5 leagues to section a starting XI of players calved successful 2000 aliases later. The extremities of BlueCo’s youth-centric recruitment strategy are being tested erstwhile again this summer. The club’s ultras person protested against nan club’s “absurd” transportation dealings. Continued on-pitch success, however, continues to dampen nan voices of discontent astir nan Meinau.

This is an article by Get French Football News