Both on as off the pitch, bottom-placed Angers’ wretched season is reaching new depths. According to a report from L’Équipe, Angers’ head coach Abdel Bouhazama stunned his players during his pre-game team talk before taking on Montpellier on Sunday, with Ilyes Chetti (28) starting as left-back. As Ouest-France previously reported, the Algerian is set to appear in court over charges of sexual assault. The alleged events took place in a nightclub in the town of Angers during the World Cup break. Chetti had acknowledged the events, but Bouhazama chose to rely on him anyway and reportedly proceeded to downplay the seriousness of sexual assault.
An Angers player, that wished to remain anonymous, has revealed the content of a “manly” team talk from Bouhzama. “He said ‘It’s nothing nasty. We all touched girls before.’ We were all stunned, without reaction, on hearing something like that.” Bouhazama has reluctantly confirmed he used those very words. “I also said that what my player did was wrong and that we all make mistakes.” Bouhazama explained he wanted to put Chetti in the best possible conditions before the game. Les Scoïstes were then humbled 5-0 by the Hérault outfit, sealing a 20th defeat in 26 league games.
GFFN | Bastien Cheval
