It is difficult to do worse than the start of the season for Portuguese Chatelero; Moreover, in the 12 groups of the League Nouvelle Aquitaine, Luis da Silva's men are the only ones who have not collected a single point in 8 days.
It is already difficult at the end of the year to imagine anything other than hypothetical survival at this level. “It is true that mathematically it is not very great, but the matches we play are interesting and the results do not reflect our performance.”
also. However, the explanation for this lack of results and points is somewhat weak. “The pool is much more difficult than last year. Then I have a very young team that includes elements from the club several years ago (9 out of 17 in the first team). »
Gone are the days when there was a rush to sign the Portuguese. No more big summer waves with departures and arrivals. At Chatellerault, we return to the familiar and the local. More or less happily. “We are no longer able to recruit players like before, that's clear. The club's bad reputation no longer attracts. And since we still don't give any money away, and aren't even close to doing so, well, we're much less in demand. »
“Mindsets have evolved greatly.”
Luis da Silva knows the store inside out. He arrived in 1994 from SOC, and today, as in the past, is in charge of the football school and first-team coach. He is a symbolic figure and guarantor of the values of a very family club, who has seen the world of football evolve and sometimes feels a little lost in this new world.
“Mentalities have changed dramatically. When I see Fontaine-le-Comte I make a reservation on the issue of my decree. The neighboring club, frankly, is unfortunate. We would not have seen this a few years ago. »
> Read also. Luis da Silva, chief of the Portuguese at Chateleroux
Others, the Portuguese, have evolved too. The great times at Municipal Stadium are far away. Today the club's teams sail between Monte Rouge, Les Nunes and Le Verger. “We feel that we are no longer in our homeland and that we have lost a little bit of our identity. It is obviously a bit upsetting for our young and old alike.”
It remains to save the season for the Al-Raya team, which will play its future starting in January. On two throws of the dice. “If we don't win our matches from the start Noel (10H), Foil (11H) -, We will already know the end of the exercise. But honestly, if we end up going down, it won't be the end of the world. We will recover. »
