Football Season Guide

Dijon were relegated from Ligue 1 last season with one of the poorest records in the history of the top flight, going on extensive winless runs and barely picking up a victory over the course of the whole season. While the playing staff has been overhauled, head coach David Linares remains in post, despite overseeing much of their dreadful form. He has a contract until 2023 and, with Dijon’s financial difficulties, things will have to get really bleak for them to replace him. In terms of the playing staff, Dijon have unsurprisingly completely changed their squad. As many as 10 members of the first team have already departed, although they have been surprisingly robust in terms of the number of starting players they have been able to retain thus far. Further changes will come in the weeks ahead, with Didier Ndong, their best midfielder by far and their outstanding player, set to move to a Ligue 1 club and Mounir Chouiar, who was hugely disappointing last term, also going. Dijon’s leadership have said that the objective for the summer is to rip out the squad and, in the words of president Delcourt “to rediscover our values, those values of the supporters”. A far more competitive and determined side should be the result. Experience has been recruited in key areas, with a far stronger backbone to the team. The goalkeeping issue has been addressed by the arrival of Baptiste Reynet, while former Montpellier man Daniel Congre drops into Ligue 2 to become the keystone of the defence. Both should be fine inclusions to the team. It is not just experience that Dijon have sought in the market, though. Marseille’s Christopher Rocchia joins up to gain some first-team experience, while Matteo Ahlinvi has arrived from Nimes. Ahlinvi showed much promise in Ligue 1 before a change of coach saw him made more peripheral, so his arrival is arguably the most exciting of the summer. In attack, meanwhile, Lyon prospect Yaya Soumare arrives for what will be an important season in his development, while Ligue 2 veteran Mickael Le Bihan should be an excellent signing at centre forward. His haul of 19 goals for AJA last season is mouth watering and Dijon will hope he gets somewhere near that mark this time around. The midfield has been augmented by the arrival of Niort’s Valentin Jacob, who impressed with Niort last season, with three goals and three assists. With these players added to the likes of Moussa Konate, Mama Balde and Frederic Sammaritano, Dijon have ample firepower.