Olivier Dall’Oglio’s side have managed to strike a balance between adapting to the league and playing the kind of attacking football with which they ascended
By Adam White and Eric Devin for Get French Football News
“We wanted to play high and hinder Lyon’s recovery, it worked rather well. We try to play. When it does not work so well, I’ll be fired, but I want to continue anyway.” Dijon are not the most fashionable or famous of Ligue 1 clubs but, as manager Olivier Dall’Oglio confirmed, they have the right attitude as their unusual blend of fluidity and physicality fast becomes one of Ligue 1’s most eye-catching styles.
For a side only promoted last season, despite a substantial top flight history, Dall’Oglio’s Dijon have usurped expectations and stereotypes of new Ligue 1 arrivals – promoted teams tend to focus on solidity and organisation. Angers, promoted a year earlier than Dijon, underlined the potential of playing to the league’s well-worn identity by battling their way to a superb ninth-place finish. Troyes, however, were unceremoniously slapped back down following a nightmare campaign in which they made little attempt to evolve or adapt and were swiftly exposed.
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Monaco 2-1 Bordeaux, Nice 2-1 Lille, Saint-Étienne 2-2 Dijon, Metz 1-1 Toulouse, Angers 3-0 Guingamp, Amiens 0-2 Rennes, Troyes 0-2 PSG, Marseille 1-1 Nantes, Montpellier 1-1 Lyon, Caen 2-0 Strasbourg
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