Guingamp boss Jocelyn Gourvennec was pinching himself after his side put an end to PSG's 44-match win streak in cup competition on Wednesday night; Monaco coach Thierry Henry was full of praise for 'keeper Loïc Badiashile.
Wednesday, 9 January 2019
Coupe de la Ligue, quarter-finals
Parc des Princes, Paris
Paris Saint-Germain 1 - 2 EA Guingamp
Thomas Tuchel (Paris Saint-Germain coach): "We had the chance to kill off the match with a second goal and we didn’t do that. And we had already opened the scoring after the first penalty for the opposition and it was already a bit too late. We were very good after their first penalty, but once we scored we took our foot off the gas. We were over-confident. We thought nothing could touch us and it doesn't work like that. Every match is difficult. I say that all the time and tonight we saw that it’s true. You have to work hard to deserve to win a match, you have to have the right mentality and we didn’t have it tonight. We are missing a few players and tonight is a big lesson for us."
Jocelyn Gourvennec (EA Guingamp coach): "You never know what to expect here at the Parc des Princes. I'm still not sure what happened here but we managed to shut them down and frustrate them as the match wore on. It's unusual to have three penalties in a match but they were penalties. Sometimes you have days like this that are a little bit magic. You just have to take it in and enjoy it. It was a great performance, but hard to explain. There are gulfs between us and them, but we showed that anything is possible."
Stade Louis II, Monaco
AS Monaco 1 - 1 Stade Rennais FC - AS Monaco win 8-7 on penalties
Thierry Henry (AS Monaco coach): "That's exactly how we want to play. We were very active in the first half, and then of course there was the penalty shoot-out. Loïc [Badiashile] was extraordinary and showed that he is our man in the cups. The fans got impatient at times tonight, but we just got on with the job and played our game. What's more, we finally showed a strong reaction to conceding a goal. That was something we weren't able to do before. This time, we got it right."
Julien Stéphan (Stade Rennais FC coach): "We lacked rhythm. It was the least dynamic performance in our last six outings. Still, we were ahead at the break and felt we could score a second if we injected a bit more rhythm. Instead, we let Monaco equalise and then they got on top of us in the shoot-out. Now we have to look ahead to Sunday's derby against Nantes. It's going to be a huge match. We'll have to analyse this defeat and turn the page. We're not here to lament our elimination. We're professionals."
MATMUT Atlantique, Bordeaux
Girondins de Bordeaux 1 - 0 Havre AC
Eric Bedouet (Girondins de Bordeaux coach): "[On Samuel Kalu's goal] It was a light in the darkness. We were hardly in the match in the first half, but things got. Bit better in the second. [Sporting director] Ricardo spoke to the players at half-time, urging them to play with more intensity. Le Havre are a very defensive team and they are tough to move around. They posed us more problems in this match, but we responded with a superb goal. We'll try to go all the way. The next match is later in January, after a strong of other matches. We'll have to manage that and not neglect the league; that's our priority."
Oswald Tanchot (Le Havre coach): "I told the players that, over the two matches we played [in the Coupe de France and the Coupe de la ligue] we posed Bordeaux a lot of problems. We showed a lot of promise and we have a place in the last 32 of the Coupe de France. Tonight, we weren't far off. We had chances but didn't convert them. We made a lot of little errors that lead to their goal. But overall, the feeling is positive."
Tuesday, 8 January 2019
Groupama Stadium, Lyon
Olympique Lyonnais 1 - 2 RC Strasbourg Alsace
Bruno Genesio (Olympique Lyonnais coach): "It's a huge disappointment. We can't be starting matches with such a lack of rhythm. We lacked aggression and engagement, not to mention cutting edge. In this kind of match, it's often the side that comes with more drive and desire that wins through to the next round, and that's where we failed. If all we could do was hit the posts, then perhaps that's all we deserved."
Thierry Laurey (RC Strasbourg Alsace coach): "My hat is off to my team's fighting spirit. We may not have been ultra-strong technically, but we made up for that by showing courage and solidarity. To beat OL, you have to take risks! And it worked out well; we got the chances to hit them on the counter that we were looking for. We frustrated Lyon as much as possible. We enjoyed some good fortune, but it's not can undeserved win. I think we did what we needed to in defence. One mustn't forget that this was our first match back after the winter break."