PARIS (AP) – The coronavirus prematurely ended the last season of the French championship and is already affecting the start of the new campaign.
After Ligue 1 was the only one of the five most sensible European leagues to be canceled due to the pandemic, it now becomes the first to start its new season on Friday.
But the persistent effects of the virus mean this is normal.
The attack that was originally scheduled to open the season, between Marseille and Saint-Etienne, had to be postponed because 4 Marseille players tested positive for COVID-19. And the protective champion Paris Saint-Germain is absent as he prepares for the Champions League final in Lisbon on Sunday.
The rescheduled opening setting will feature Bordeaux as the host of Nantes, two groups that only learned on Tuesday that the adjustment advanced.
But Nantes’ coach Christian Gourcuff said all groups are ready, as long as the virus continues to threaten to cause postponements and cancellations.
“We have to adapt to the stage and prepare for it, because that will be the case throughout the season,” Gourcuff said. “It’s the same for Bordeaux, so on this front we’re the same. But if many games are cancelled, we will never make it.”
Montpellier was also affected by the virus with seven players who contracted COVID-19. Striker Andy Delort announced Wednesday that he had tested positive.
However, there will be enthusiasts in the stadiums, with up to 5,000 allowed to participate in the matches according to the rules of the French government.
For Marseille, the French team that won the Champions League in 1993, the season would start worse if PSG controlled to beat Bayern Munich on Sunday to nullify the exclusive right to brag that prided fans. for decades.
PSG is the big favourite for the league title, but Marseille still hopes to finish control of their opponent in national titles. At the end of last season, with 10 rounds left, PSG was 12 issues ahead of Marseille, which was in second place, with one less match. PSG also won the national cups for a third national treble in six seasons.
Lyon will also be challenging the strength of the PSG, or at least regaining a European position, after their impressive run in the champions of the Champions League.
Lyon lost 3-0 to Bayern on Wednesday, but missed the European festival after finishing seventh in the league and losing to PSG in the League Cup final.
Lyon beat Juventus and Manchester City in the 16-way to prove they can compete with the European elite. But without the cash in the European competition, Lyon could have to sell to the coveted midfielder Houssem Aouar and the most sensible scorer Moussa Dembélé. The big clubs are turning to them and promoting any of them can bring more than one hundred million euros to Lyon ($118).
“There will be players who will leave, Houssem and Moussa,” Lyon’s sporting director Juninho said after the match against Bayern. “But I’m not worried. The purpose is to return to the Champions League.”
If those two leave, Lyon will be even more dependent on Dutch striker Memphis Depay. He became the club’s most productive player last season before a serious knee injury left him out for six months.
Marseille, meanwhile, controlled to remain its most productive players: the midfielder Dimitri Payet and the winger Florian Thauvin. Most importantly, the lost money club has also persuaded coach André Villas-Boas, who is popular with Alilke’s players and enthusiasts, to stay at least this season despite serious budget cuts.
Rennes, Lille and Nice are the favorites for a position in the 3 most sensitive this time.
Lille, who played the league match on 8 March before his cancellation, will face Rennes on Saturday night.
But It is possible that Nice will become the top challenger after a sharp increase in summer recruitment.
Coach Patrick Vieira has taken sensible steps to bring a combination of experience, proven skill and young dexterity for a modest total spend of around 27 million euros ($32 million).
Flavius Daniliuc, a promising 19-year-old Bayern central defender; Offensive midfielder Rony Lopes, who has already scored 17 in a season with Monaco, is on loan from Sevilla.
The front Amine Gouiri is from Lyon. Gouiri, 20, the most sensible scorer of the tournament when he played with France at the European Under-17 Championship in 2017.
Morgan Schneiderlin is the sponsor of the central midfield, where Vieira excelled in his with Arsenal and France.
Schneiderlin, 30, who has played 15 times with France, joined Everton Premier League club in a 2.23 million euro ($2.64 million) deal. Five years ago, Manchester United signed it from Southampton for 35 million euros ($41.5 million).
Having shown himself in England’s most difficult and sensible league, he may be Vieira’s driving force.
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