At the Meinau stadium,
Suddenly, the Meinau held her breath. We were playing the 73rd minute and, on a harmless cross, Fabio had just badly missed his clearance. And who arrived full axis, just after the unfortunate Nantes defender? Dimitri Liénard of course! The man with the magic left foot, the one who had struck down Lyon one evening in May 2018 with a magnificent now legendary free kick.
This time, the gesture may remain in less memory. But less than a second later, the captain of RC Strasbourg sent a missile under the bar of Alban Lafont (1-0, final score). All in power. “After the error of the defender, I saw the ball arrive and I took the time to control well”, specifies the person concerned, who knows himself capable of the worst “sausages” sometimes. Well, not this Sunday. It could not happen to him against such an opponent, his favorite victim in Ligue 1.
“I had already scored last year in Nantes and here two years ago, with a low cross shot,” recalls the player with a good memory. And then the week of training had given him confidence. “I had a hot leg on set pieces and Jean-Marc (Kuentz, one of the assistant coaches) told me that it would be good if I scored this weekend,” he laughs. “That’s why I went to see him after the goal. »
During this time, the wall was still singing to the glory of the man who likes to call himself “the peasant of Belfort”. Both in reference to his childhood in the neighboring village of Évette-Salbert and to his bumpy career. The story is now known: before revealing himself in Alsace, Dimitri Liénard played for a long time in the amateur football divisions. A period during which he worked, during the week, at the supermarket.
“If we dream, we will break the mouth”
Since his arrival in 2013 at Racing, the Franc-Comtois has never denied his particularism. In a fairly codified and closed professional world, he stands out with his simplicity and outspokenness. As again this Sunday when he spoke of the rest of the season for this Racing which occupies 4th place in Ligue 1 after 23 days. Can the people of Strasbourg now think of qualifying for the European Cup at the end of the championship?
“If we dream, we will break the mouth”, he replied with naturalness. “If we want to continue to like it, we must not take ourselves for others. There are no stars in Strasbourg, everyone must be present. It is up to us, the elders, to remember this. He has a voice that carries a little more than the others. This season, Julien Stéphan has chosen to name him captain.
“Dimitri is the first player I called when I arrived, he is one of the leaders and embodies the values of the club and the region”, recalls the Alsatian coach. “We talked a lot. We have a deal with Dim’: he has the armband but that does not imply a permanent presence on the pitch. »
This season, the former midfielder has even been converted to left piston, where he seems to be having fun. “What we are experiencing this season is extraordinary”, savors the blue No. 11, who will have one year of contract left in June. The Meinau has not finished holding its breath…
Source: 20minutes
