“It’s better to lose with our ideas than to be afraid”

“It’s better to lose with our ideas than to be afraid and change everything“: Lille coach Paulo Fonseca told AFP on Saturday that he did not intend to deny his attacking style and “put the bus in front of the goal” against the Paris SG armada on Sunday (8:45 p.m.).

What did you enjoy about the first two Ligue 1 games and where do you need to improve?

Paulo Fonseca: What I liked the most is the state of mind, the mentality displayed by the players and above all the desire to apply in matches what we work on in training. I liked the courage shown by the team, our attacking play from the start to the end of the match, but also our defensive play and the reaction of the players in Nantes after the difficult first half. I liked our way of pressing and recovering the ball very high. But we have to improve a lot in all these areas. Sometimes we take too many risks defensively because we play high, we have to be careful with the balance but I liked a lot of things.

How do you judge the adaptation of the team to your principles of play?

To be honest, I didn’t expect it to go so fast. Normally integrating my style of play and paying attention to all the details takes time, that’s what my experience at my previous clubs had shown me. We already see a lot of signs on the pitch that our ideas are beginning to be integrated and it shows that the players believe in our method and try to apply it, that’s the most important thing.

Do you think you will be able to apply your attacking game against Paris SG?

Obviously, PSG may force us to defend more sometimes, but our intention is not to put the bus in front of the goal and only play on the counter-attack… We want to have the ball, we want to attack with a lot of players, defend high, react quickly to the loss of the ball. Afterwards, we play against PSG, who normally have more ball, but we will try to prevent Paris from being comfortable, from playing in comfort. Above all, it must be well balanced.

Is it better to adapt to the opponent or to keep his style of play?

You can do both. Since I arrived, I have promised the supporters and my players that we will be a courageous team, regardless of whether we play against Nantes or PSG, so I have to show this courage to the players. I can’t tell them: + We are going to play against PSG so we have to change everything and we are going to put the bus in front of the goal and only defend +. It wouldn’t make sense. If I ask the players for courage, I must be the first to show courage. It’s better to lose with our ideas than to be afraid and change everything.

Are you afraid of Paris SG?

Not at all. It’s the right time to show the team’s state of mind and value against the best club in Ligue 1, it’s the perfect opportunity. And the players will not be able to show their value if we only defend… We have nothing to lose in this match and on the contrary we have everything to gain. Afterwards, if Paris is better, we will have to accept it. But I want us to have no regrets. If we lose but we tried to play, showed courage and fought until the end, I will be satisfied with my players.»