[meatman]

Part (II) - The dark horses for promotion


Reims
For the last few seasons, the champagne club have been a midtable force, but this could be the year when they step up a gear and become dark horses for promotion. They have lost a few players over the summer, but nobody of massive importance. I like the look of some of their new signings and I think this team will work well together. Reims are always a strong home force, and if they can just sort themselves out away from home, then id say they have every chance of making the top 6 positions.

In defence they have lost Ludovic Jeannel but he wasn’t getting any younger and wasn’t that much of an important player. Reims look really strong at the back this year thanks to hatful of new players. Jean Deveaux comes in from Strasbourg and he did well last year in their promotion campaign. He’s a little on the old side but will add experience and also a bit of extra quality. Likewise, Ludovic Liron comes in from ligue 1 Valenciennes and he looks an excellent signing for the centre back position. Johann Truchet will add depth for the right back position and Reims are also thinking of the future by bringing in youngster, Sofyane Cherfa from Louhans. Along with these new players, Reims of course do have some good options in defence. Barbier, Balde, Ielsch, Fontenette and Giraodon are all proven performers, and coach, Thierry Froger has some superb options at the back this season. Along with Nantes, this looks to be the strongest defence in ligue 2 and will be hard to break down.

The midfield has lost a bit of depth as a few squad players have departed. They are most affected on the wings by the departures of Tiene and Bonnal. Nicolas Godemeche also returns to Montpellier after his brief loan spell. On the right wing, Reims have brought in an unknown player, Zahir Zerdab from national division club Beauvais. It will be interesting to see how he goes and he might well have to play a major role this season considering Reims do lack players on the right hand side. Defensive minded youngster, Thomas Ayasse comes in from Toulouse and he’s said to be a promising young player. The midfield does seem to be a bit thin on the ground, although when at full strength it should go well. The key man for Reims is Julien Feret who will play in a free role and is the main creative man. He is someone I rate very highly and when he’s playing well, many teams struggle to cope with him. Karl Tourenne in the holding role will be vital, but as I said, there is a possible lack of cover in most positions, except the left hand side where they have loads of options.

The attack force is very thin on the ground, but the options that Reims have are real quality. Cedric Faure is a key man, and was last year’s top scorer netting 15 goals. He’s a proven performer at this level and I expect him to fill his boots again this season. Joining him as a partner is Yann Kermorgant who comes in from Grenoble, and he also had a good last season scoring 11 times. This duo could work well, although sometimes Reims will go with just one man upfront. Shiva N’zigou is the other decent striker that they have and he is more than capable of hitting the back of the net. But apart from Feret who can also play upfront, Reims don’t have many options in attack and could do with buying a few more players. If injuries kick in then they will definitely be in trouble, but if they don’t, then the quality available is excellent.

Overall, Reims look to be a decent team this year and have to be classed as a challenger for promotion. I can certainly see them finish in the top 6 at least, although might not have quite enough to make it up to ligue 1. Their defensive options available are really good, and if they can just reinforce the midfield and attack with a few more players, then they will become a serious force. The club has high ambitions an is certainly moving in the right direction. They will be very strong at home and if they can just win a few more times on the road, then people will have to take them really seriously. You will underestimate Reims at their peril because they will be one of the stronger ligue 2 sides this season.

Key players - Julien Feret (Attacking midfielder), Cedric Faure (Striker)

Verdict

Defence 9/10 (One of the strongest in ligue 2)
Midfield 6/10 (Some quality options but a lack of cover the worry)
Attack 6/10 (Very thin on the ground but they have some really good strikers who will score goals)

Overall 5th - Strong defence could make them into promotion challengers


Grenoble
The Alpine side finished 5th last season and it was a successful year for them. However, they will have to cope with the loss of 3 key defenders who have gone over the summer, although the rest of the team seems to be in good nick. They should be a top 10 team although not quite good enough to get involved in the promotion hunt. Grenoble also have a new coach this season after they harshly dismissed Yvon Pouliquen at the back end of last year. The new man in charge is Bosnian, Mehmet Bazdarevic and it will be interesting to see how he copes. There are some decent players in all areas but it will be a tough job to try and rekindle the sort of team spirit they had under Pouliquen.

The defence is the area that has been severely decimated over the summer and they have lost the key centre back duo of Matthias Vivian and Steven Pele. These guys were rocks for Grenoble and will be hard to replace. In addition, they have also lost key right back, Jeremy Stinat who leaves to go to Sedan. Grenoble have brought new players in to cover those positions but there are certainly some question marks. Maxime Flachez drops down a division from Valenciennes, although he’s quite old now at 35 years. Nevertheless he should do a solid job and he looks to be a good buy. His partner at the back will more than likely be Vitakic who has comes in from Lille, although didn’t play many games last season. The right back replacement is Jimmy Manfroi from Montpellier and he should also be ok. This new backline will need time to settle down and it might end up being quite decent, but it is unproven so there will always be initial doubts. There is a possible lack of cover in all areas and Grenoble might be bit thin in the ground. I do have my worries about their defence, but it could turn out to be alright.

The midfield hasn’t really lost anyone and it looks to be stronger with the addition of 3 new players. Laurent Marquet arrives from Belgian club, Beveran and he should be an excellent signing. Dimitrijevic from Nantes is of reasonable quality and will add more depth to the squad. Damien Dufour comes in from Auxerre and I’m not sure how good he is but he will add to the defensive options in midfield. Grenoble have also brought in the experienced Yann Lacheur from Troyes who will add to the creative options. Already, Grenoble are strong in the middle and on the flanks with Kamissoko and Yanev both good crossers of the ball. Jimmy Juan and Marchal Robin are proven performers and I like the look of this midfield, definitely one of the strongest in the ligue.

The attack force will have to cope with the loss of Yann Kermorgant who leaves to go to Reims. He scored quite a few goals last season although wasn’t always a regular starter. Grenoble’s key striker is still Nassim Akrour, but he isn’t a spring chicken anymore at 34 years of age. Nevertheless he’s still of decent quality and should hit the back of the net a few times. Franck Dja Djedje completes his transfer from PSG and Grenoble have a few other decent options upfront. I do feel though that this attack force could become really good if they were to buy a real star man. Maybe they will strengthen before the end of the summer, but even if they don’t then it looks to be in reasonable nick.

Overall, Grenoble seem to have plenty of potential to do well this season. There are some doubts in defence, but it could work out alright. The midfield looks to be really strong and they have loads of options in that department. A new coach coming in will shake things up a bit, so they might need time to adapt, but I think they will do quite well. Grenoble look set to be a top 10 team this season, and just like last year, they are perhaps dark horses for promotion. I don’t think they have enough all round quality to launch a bid, although will be capable of beating anyone on their day.

Key players - Hirsto Yanev (Attacking midfielder left), Nassim Akrour (Striker)

Verdict

Defence 5/10 (Their weakest area due to key losses and question marks over new signings)
Midfield 8/10 (New players will add more depth and it looks really good, one of the strongest in the ligue)
Attack 6/10 (Akrour key but is quite old now, perhaps lack a real stand out star, although have plenty of options)

Overall 6th - Excellent midfield could propel them into challengers at the top


Sedan
There has been a lot of change at Sedan over the summer and many key players have left. After their relegation from Ligue 1 last season its going to be hard for them to hit back and I’m not so sure they have enough quality available to them. Id imagine Sedan should be a top 10 side, probably a top 6 one. But there a lot of question marks about them all over the pitch and it will be interesting to see how they perform.

The defence has lost important wing backs, Belhadj and Ducourtioux, both of whom were key individuals for Sedan last season. Abdou has also left for Clement and this weakens their options on the right hand side. The signing of Jeremy Stinat from Grenoble looks to be a good one though and he should do quite well. The central defensive duo of Sartre and Lachor should be unchanged and they welcome new signing Mickael Cerielo from National division Cannes. There are some reasonable options at the back, and they will have a stronger defence than most teams, but there are others who just have that bit more extra quality.

The midfield has also been weakened by the loss of some important players. Stephane Noro was injured for most of last season but he is a quality player and would’ve been ideal for Sedan this season. They have also lost a lot of creative options on the right hand side with Marin, Ouadah and Jau all departing. On the left hand side Maurice Belay returns to Monaco after his loan which means Sedan have to find replacements. And at the moment, I’m not so sure they have, and the midfield looks to be very thin on the ground. Albert Banning comes on loan from PSG but he’s a more defensive minded player and they need more creativity. I really don’t like the look of this midfield much and Sedan definitely need to strengthen more before the end of the summer.

The attack force has lost key striker, Gregory Pujol, who moves to ligue 1 Valenciennes. This is a blow for Sedan and they will now need some other players become prolific this year. Mansour Boutabout didn’t adapt to life in ligue 1 very well, but he did a very good job for Sedan a couple of seasons ago in their promotion campaign. I think he will score some goals and Sedan will hope that some of their new signings will also prove to be useful. Lucau comes in from ligue 1 Le Mans and he could adapt quite well. Rachmane Barry arrives from Marseille and he’s really pacey so could cause defences problems. Overall I think its an attack force which will score some goals, although there are certainly some teams who have better options upfront.

In conclusion, I think Sedan are fairly hard to predict this year. They do have some quality options in their team, but there has been a lot of change at the club and it might be hard for the new players to gel properly. At the moment they look to have a weak midfield and it could prove to be their downfall. Sedan cant be ruled out of the promotion race but I think what’s more likely is that this could be a rebuilding year. I’m pretty sure they will be a top 10 side, but id like to see how they start the season before assessing how good they really are.

Key players - Romain Sartre (Centre back), Mansour Bout about (Striker)

Verdict

Defence 7/10 (Key players left, but some decent new additions and looks quite strong)
Midfield 5/10 (A bit weak at the moment and not enough depth)
Attack 6/10 (Pujol loss a blow, but they have enough quality to be a threat)

Overall 7th - Perhaps have the quality to mount promotion bid, but will ultimately miss out