Stade de Reims manager Will Still has hit back at what he considered to be an “appropriate” remark from referee François Letexier after Les Stadistes’ 2-0 defeat against RC Lens. Referencing Still’s link to Sunderland, Letexier reportedly told the Englishman that the refereeing in England “would be better”.
Letexier’s joke did not go down well with Still. The Reims manager had been heavily linked with the Sunderland job in midweek and even made an unrelated trip to the UK, which had been mistaken for talks with the Championship club. “I can’t deny that there is interest in me, I can confirm this, just as there has been in the past, like last summer and like these recent weeks. I find it flattering, without being arrogant at all, or pretentious. But for now, and today, I am the manager of Stade de Reims. I am still the manager of Stade de Reims,” he said on Thursday, whilst also complaining about having been portrayed as a “mercenary”.
‘I hope that I will be the Reims manager for many more months or years’ – Still
A turbulent week ended in a defeat for Reims, who fell on the wrong side of fine margins in a tight match at the Stade Bollaert on Saturday evening. Still was left frustrated by some of the refereeing decisions during the match, and he approached Letexier post-match to express his dissatisfaction. Letexier responded, “Don’t worry, it (the refereeing) will be better.”
“I found it funny, or not funny at all. He said something like, ‘It will be better in England.’ I didn’t find it very appropriate, but it’s not a story, it’s not interesting,” reacted Still in his post-match interview.
Letexier made remark ‘without any ill intention’
Contacted by L’Équipe, Letexier has responded to the controversy. “At the end of the match, I simply said, ‘Maybe best of luck in England’. It was meant to be light-hearted, with a smile and without any ill intention. He misinterpreted me,” he said.
Still also addressed his future as Reims manager, stating that the defeat to Lens (2-0) will not be his last match with Les Stadistes. ” It definitely won’t be my last match, unless I’m fired tomorrow. I don’t think that’s planned. I am the manager of Reims and I hope that I will be the Reims manager for many more months or years to come,” he said.
Still will be hoping that the talk surrounding his managerial future will abate so that he can focus on getting Reims back on-track. The club have lost four of their last five matches, albeit they have faced the likes of Paris Saint-Germain, AS Monaco and OGC Nice in that time, and have dropped to 8th in Ligue 1.
