His arrival had been escorted with doubts last winter. Today, Martégaux supporters want to build a future with him. At 53, Hakim Malek remains a character still rather unknown to the general public in France, less in Algeria, where he has built a solid reputation in recent years. Deputy of Bernard Casoni at MC Mouloudia, this Franco-Algerian coach still coached in Alès (N3) last season. This had been able to frighten certain supporters of Martigues, anxious to see a more curved profile land in January in January. “” I came back to France to pass my BEPF. But many ignore my past experiences. I coached twice in the African Champions League, I made an Arab Cup semi-final. In 2010, I was number one in Algeria “, He recalls.
15 years have passed, and it was therefore in Martigues, where he had evolved as a player between 1998 and 1999, that the Cinquantenaire posed his suitcases for what was his first professional experience in France. A young person in the division, not in the profession. Upon his arrival, Malek was able to rely on his past experiences to re -mobilize a suffering cloakroom, and graze the miracle. “” We were dead, resurrected, saved, not saved, then died. You can compare it to a hospital and a grand, sick. We were buried, the death certificate was signed, but we were trying to breathe in the coffin “, He metaphor.
An immediate impact
Last of Ligue 2 with 9 points behind the first non -relegation when he arrived, the Martégaux woke up long -standing resources to start a dizzying ascent. “” When you formalize the maintenance with figures and objectives to be achieved, it becomes less heavy in the heads. I did not feel a fatalistic wardrobe. I was clear with the players: there were 15 games left, or 45 points to take. We were 12 points and we should have taken 21. We finally took 20. Regret, it was not to have arrived earlier because if I arrived a month earlier, I think we were maintained. Even if there are 2 or 3 games where we should not go through, I allow myself to believe it. »
The figures do not say the opposite. In a world where its players would have maintained the pace displayed under its orders from August to May (1.5 points per game, against 0.5 before its arrival), the club would have finished its season with around 52 points, sufficient to make a pretender to the climb (Annecy finished 6th with 51 points). “” I think that I am more than at the level in this league championship 2. We decreased the number of goals conceded by 2 and we multiplied almost 3 the goals scored (from 0.5 to 1.5). We went from the worst athletic team, in the 5th (in terms of km traveled, from high intensity race). We finished with the 2nd best defense over the period. »
A common desire to pursue together, but clear objectives
Today, there is a common desire to extend cohabitation, even if the club crosses hours of uncertainty. “” I did not hesitate to come to Martigues. I played there as a player and I know the evolution of the club. I know well the sports director Djamal Mohamed who is very competent, and who is not innocent to the 3 consecutive climbs. A healthy environment in which everyone's responsibilities are clearly defined, and which makes life easier for their sports director, but also its president, not of the intrusive genre.
It will still be necessary to follow the club's administrative news, which could have feared a demotion in National 2 this week. Finally, Martigues was rather “well” well “, since the club was offered a maintenance in National … with the withdrawal of professional status. A season that could allow Malek to confirm, before perhaps going to see what is higher. “” I would like to coach in L1, it remains the goal. I have no apprehension to say to myself “tomorrow it will be difficult to coach in L1”. I am calibrated to be able to sit anywhere, without fear and fear. I sat on a bench where there were 115,000 supporters in a stadium, with a pressure three times higher He says.
But even with 15 years of coach career behind him, Malek refrains from going too fast. He measures the enormous opportunity offered to him this season, even if the merit of having known how to seize it comes up entirely. Besides, he regrets that some of his colleagues from below do not have the same luck as him: “My journey is very unique, but in its particularity, I have been able to obtain assets that are different from other coaches. Many coaches officiating in levels below and which were in the same case as me, are not identified. However, they have as many skills as many coaches from above. ”
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