St-Étienne are dreaming about glory while staring relegation in the face | Ligue 1

Euphoria, optimism and ambition were the dominant emotions at Saint-Étienne in the summer. With promotion to Ligue 1 secured and new owners onboard, the club could dream of replicating past glories. But waking up the sleeping giant of French football has not been as easy as flicking a switch.

St-Étienne returned to the top flight after a two-year stint in Ligue 2 thanks to a dour relegation playoff win against Metz. Olivier Dall’Oglio, who replaced Laurent Batlles as manager mid-season, took the club up by reverting to a defensive, back-to-basics approach. However, that approach did not translate well in Ligue 1, despite a summer splurge from the new owners.

The new arrivals were exciting. Zuriko Davitashvili was excellent with Bordeaux in Ligue 2 and featured for Georgia at the Euros; Belgian youth international Lucas Stassin had shown great promise with KVC Westerlo; and France U20 international Pierre Ekwah arrived on loan from Sunderland highly-rated. But, bar former Reims captain Yunis Abdelhamid, the new players had very little experience. St-Étienne were preparing for the long-term but neglecting the short-term, putting the cart before the horse, walking before they could run. Their sudden jump in ambition marked a wild swing from the previous decade of inertia, but they are yet to find a happy medium and it could cost them their place in the top flight.

An 8-0 humbling against Nice in September was a bitter dose of reality. “The feeling is one of shame,” said Dall’Oglio. Huss Fahmy, the Kilmer vice-president, and Loïc Perrin, a St-Étienne legend who is now the club’s sporting coordinator, both addressed the dressing room after that defeat, but they decided to keep Dall’Oglio in his post. However, when the situation had not improved by December, the axe fell.

The defence has been porous and dreadfully passive. Abdelhamid was brought in as a solution but it quickly became evident that, at 37, it was one season too many. He was error-prone under Dall’Oglio and has not started since Horneland’s arrival.

The issue is a top-heavy side created by an uneven recruitment drive. Stassin and Davitashvili are overwhelming success stories and ones for the future. The former is the team’s top scorer with eight goals, including a thunderbolt against Brest at the weekend. And the latter has 14 goal contributions in his first season in Ligue 1. But, despite some strong performances from midfielder Benjamin Bouchouari, the team is not providing them with regular service.

A late chip from Cardona salvaged a point against Brest as he redeemed himself for his earlier error but, with Reims beating Lens, the club’s chances of survival are diminishing. There has been a naivety to St-Étienne’s approach that permeates all levels of the club. Perhaps that was to be expected given their lack of experience; ambition does not guarantee competence.

Talking points

Lyon’s 3-1 win at Auxerre has taken them into the final qualification spot, just two points behind Monaco. They are only the third away side, along with Monaco and Strasbourg, to have won at the Stade de l’Abbé-Deschamps this season. The usual suspects – Georges Mikautadze, Rayan Cherki and Alexandre Lacazette – were on the scoresheet as they prepared for their match at Old Trafford on Thursday. Lyon leapfrogged Strasbourg, who drew 2-2 with Nice in a Premier League multiclub proxy encounter. Youssouf Ndayishimiye’s last-gasp equaliser slowed Strasbourg’s unexpected charge towards Champions League qualification. Liam Rosenior’s side are sixth in the table, two points above Nice, who remain winless in their last five games. With just five points separating second to seventh, the race for Europe remains wide open.