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Laurent Blanc: Bordeaux ‘Should’ve Done Better’ Against Valenciennes

Les Girondins' coach has explained that his side failed to take heed of his pre-match warnings...

Nov 23, 2009 9:46:34 AM

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Laurent Blanc - Bordeaux Coach

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Defeated by in-form Valenciennes at the weekend, Girondins de Bordeaux head coach Laurent Blanc was clearly frustrated by the manner of his side’s loss.

Les Girondins had not previously ceded a home league match for two years but they would come unstuck 1-0 on Saturday night. VA struck early through Mamadou Samassa and then a combination of manful defence and superb goalkeeping from Guy Ndy Assembe was enough to keep the hosts at bay.

“Valenciennes opened the scoring and then defended very well,” Blanc explained after the match, according to Ligue 1’s official website. “We knew that we would have to be wary of their counterattacking and then we go and concede a goal to Valenciennes’ first counterattack. We had chances but their goalkeeper played well, and I think that in certain instances we should’ve done better.”

Hero of the hour for the guests, Ndy Assembe, was evidently pleased with the outcome of the fixture.

“It feels good,” he told his club’s official website. “Everyone predicted us to lose against the French champions. We came into the game with an idea, we have implemented it and maintained it to the end. It paid off in the end, that's fine.”

Valenciennes boast Ligue 1’s finest away record this term, winning five of their last seven road encounters. The side who didn’t win at all on their travels last season are up to sixth in Le Championnat.

Bordeaux were knocked off top spot by Auxerre, who lead a tightly congested pack of teams. Indeed, the top eight outfits are separated by only four points.

Robin Bairner, Goal.com

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