For his first competitive apperarance in an OM jersey, during the first match of the Ligue 1 season away to Grenoble, Fabrice Abriel put in a very good performance.
How did you first match in an OM jersey go?
We put in a solid performance and gained a lot of experience. Physically we were not any better than Grenoble but we managed to spend less energy and were able to score qt crucial moments of the game. Personally I felt better and better asd the match went on. As far as sensations out there are concerned I felt very much at my ease. We scored very early on and in that situation it is easier to hold onto the ball.
You did seem to very much at ease, it was as if you had been part of the squad for years?
There is still a lot of work to be done, but we are trying to improve on our automatisms as we did during the pre-season friendlies. And you know, I’m not 20 years old any more, I know how to get myself into the right positions so that I can quickly find my feet. We saw a revolt from Grenoble for about fifteen minutes, but we were able to deal with it, remain solid and not concede. We rode out the storm, it’s good that we were able to do that as away from home it is clear that our opponents will push forward at us.
What instructions did you have from the coach?
There were just general instructions as the coach had complete confidence in the entire squad. Afterwards he explained to all of us, line by line, what was expected of us. In the midfield, he wanted us to suffocate their midfield by closuing down quite high up the field and to try, when we had the ball, to play the ball around as much as possible with Benoît (Cheyrou) and Edouard (Cissé) in order to get away from their marking and to conserve the ball.
