Caen vs Stade Reims preview - Vasseur expects tough Caen test

Posted Friday, January 16, 2015 by PA

Reims coach Jean-Luc Vasseur is wary of the threat Ligue 1 basement boys Caen pose as the two sides go head to head at the Stade Michel d'Ornano on Saturday.

Vasseur's men currently sit 10th in the table following last weekend's 2-1 defeat at home to high-flying St Etienne but hope to build on that position with a positive result at Caen.

Vasseur admitted Saturday's game will not be a walk in the park for his Reims outfit who are out for revenge against the struggling Caen side, who sit four points adrift at the bottom of the table.

Caen came out 2-0 winners in the reverse fixture back in August and Vasseur told www.smcaen.fr: "There is a notion of revenge.

"In August, even if we had got opportunities, the match was tasteless. At the time, we were struggling. Today, we are no longer in a similar state of mind.

"Saturday, it will be a different scenario. With our new balance, we need to bring something."

He added: "It will not be an easy match. It will be more efficient than against Saint-Etienne. Against a team that has nothing to lose and make their last stand, we will need to extremely careful."

It is a tough challenge for Caen coach Patrice Garande, whose lowly side have failed to record a win in their last 12 outings in all competitions.

They head into the match on the back of Saturday's 1-0 loss at Lille and searching for some much-needed points as they sit five points from safety in the Ligue 1 relegation zone.

Garande knows their opponents will be looking for revenge but tried to remain positive, and he took to the club's official Twitter account to say: "Against Lille, we rediscovered the performance that we had earlier in the season. We lost ok, but we are on the right track.

"They will have a spirit of revenge from the first leg, they are confident."

Caen will be without suspended Benin defender Jordan Adeoti, while attacking midfielder Herve Bazile is ruled out so Garande has included striker Mathieu Duhamel and defender Nicolas Seube in his squad.