After the training session on Friday May 1, Jérôme Rothen appeared at a press conference. The midfielder discussed what’s at stake when Rennes visit this weekend as well as what PSG’s ambitions for the season are.
Jérôme, how is the preparation for the Rennes match going?“We’re getting ready for the match in an ambitious frame of mind so we can continue our strong recent run of results and above all keep pace with Lyon, maybe even overtake them. We know we have to win on Sunday. There are five matches left and every single point is important. So we need to start well and take all three at home this weekend. Some say that Rennes will already have at least one eye on the French Cup final, but I don’t think so. We saw their match against Bordeaux and they gave everything they had even though they lost. It’ll be tough to move them around.”
Does Paris still have a shot at the title?
“Even if we can get 15 points, and make up seven or 8 on Marseille, given that we have an inferior goal difference, I’d say it’s going to be pretty tough. Honestly, I can’t see Marseille dropping that many points in so few matches. You have to be realistic. Right now what’s really within reach, after our excellent draw with Lyon, is third place. If we could have been guaranteed third place at the start of the season, we all would have signed up immediately. We’re very ambitious and full of energy to pull this off, because it would be a huge thing to finish above Lyon. We have to watch out for the Lyonnais, they could easily rear their heads again, so it’s going to be tough to outdo them.”
At one stage this season Rennes looked like contenders but seem to have fallen off the pace of late…
“They really did their best stuff in the first half of the season, and everyone expected more from them this year. People thought they’d be fighting for a top-five finish. But they’ve gone off the rails a bit, which is so much the better for us. That makes one fewer club to battle against, but then there’s Toulouse, Lille and Lyon who can all get in front of us on the table. So Sunday is really a must-win game.”
How is the squad dealing with the uncertainty of not knowing whether Paul Le Guen will be in charge next season?
“We know that we’re not going to know until the end of the season, and we’re okay with that. It doesn’t change anything for us. That’s what the off-season is for. You can have a change of players, coach, president, owner… Who knows? All we need to know is that we have to give everything in our five remaining matches so we have nothing to regret, so at the end of the season we can be certain in the knowledge that we’ve had a good season.”
