Football Season Guide

Nancy flirted with relegation to the National last season and are eager to avoid such an eventuality this time around. The club spent much of last term in a state of turmoil, changing coaches on no fewer than four occasions before finally settling on Didier Tholot, who led them from April and will continue to do so into the new campaign. He did, at least, manage to put together a string of positive home results, and the aim this term will to build from their success at Stade Marcel Picot. Last season, Nancy were rather flimsy down the spine of their team and to that end they have signed Danilson Da Cruz, a player who was a stalwart of the Reims side that won the league with a massive margin to spare. He is an instant upgrade, while the arrival of Ernest Seka from Strasbourg is another good piece of business. Given how few success stories they had last term, with the exception of attacking midfielder Amine Bassi, who flitted in and out of the side depending which coach was in charge, they may be a little disappointed by the few players they have been able to get off their books. Veteran Youssouf Hadji has retired after being their only reliable presence in front of goal last season, while experienced full-back Joffrey Cuffaut has also gone. It is in attack, however, where Nancy were found so wanting last season. Maurice Dale and Anthony Koura combined for a total of three goals in 30 appearances but both should be far more capable of better numbers. Indeed, both should be excellent forwards for this standard. Equally, the midfield and defence both need to find a better balance.