Mired in an epic struggle for Ligue 1 Uber Eats survival, FC Nantes have chosen to part ways with Antoine Kombouaré and rely on internal solutions for the season's final sprint, the club announced in a statement Tuesday. Pierre Aristouy, coach of the U19s, will be in charge of the team for the last four games of the season, assisted by Oswaldo Vizcarrondo, current coach of the women's team.

Called to the rescue in February 2021, Kombouaré managed to keep the side in Ligue 1 Uber Eats that season and carried the team to the Coupe de France trophy the following year - his first title in over two decades.

But, despite a decent run in the Europa League and another Coupe de France final in 2023, he couldn't stop the team from falling apart in the league. Currently 17th, two points behind AJ Auxerre (16th) and three behind Stade Brestois 29 (15th) and RC Strasbourg Alsace (14th), FC Nantes have not won in the league since mid-February.

And the team has just suffered three defeats in just one week: one against Toulouse FC at the Stade de France (5-1) and two 2-0 league defeats against Brest and Strasbourg, direct competitors for survival.

Kombouaré: 'There is hope'

Club president Waldemar Kita therefore chose to let Kombouaré, who was at the end of his contract, leave the club to try to jolt the team into action. And he entrusted the squad to two in-house coaches - both for lack of an obvious external solution and to leave himself the possibility of bringing in someone more renowned for next season in case of top-flight survival.

A former striker who played for Les Canaris after graduating from the youth academy in Nantes, Aristouy returned to the banks of the Loire in 2017 as a coach and garnered convincing results with the U19s. Venezuela international Vizcarrondo also wore the Yellow and Green shirt (2013-2017).

Their task will be tough against four opponents who will not do them any favours: Toulouse, tormentors from the Stade de France and bitter loser of the 2021 play-offs; Montpellier HSC, revived by a Michel Der Zakarian who still has a grudge against Kita; LOSC, in the middle of a sprint for Europe; and finally Angers SCO, the bottom club, who would be happy to drag their local rivals down with them!

"We're doing terribly, but 16th place is just two points away, it's in our reach," said Kombouare on Sunday. "There is hope. We need a big kick in the ass."

But it will be without him. For two years, he seemed to succeed beyond expectations, offering the Nantes fans evenings worthy of their heyday.

Lafont: 'Back to the drawing board'

But the team couldn't bear up under a hellish schedule between early February and early April: Juventus Turin, another run in the Coupe de France and playing almost all of the top half of the league table. They gradually fell in the rankings, without managing to buck the trend when the calendar finally served up teams more on par with Les Canaris.

While the Coupe de France gave the club a chance to dream of something big this season, the heavy defeat in the final sank Nantes, who followed up with two identical defeats: a solid start, goals conceded on big mistakes and an attack too toothless to get back on track.

Deprived since last summer of Randal Kolo Muani, who left to shine in Germany and with France, the team has lost most of its bite. With Andy Delort not having scored in Ligue 1 Uber Eats since January, Mostafa Mohamed's energy and Ludovic Blas' dazzling performances have not been enough: 17th in the league, the team has only scored 35 goals in 34 games.

"We're in a very negative spiral, and we can't get our heads above water," warned captain Alban Lafont on Sunday. "So we'll have to go back to the drawing board."