Football Season Guide

Reims negotiated what was potentially a tricky season for them last time out with some degree of comfort, though the transition away from being a stout defensive team into a more attacking and dynamic outfit was not immediately obvious. This was what head coach Oscar Garcia had promised, and to some degree he was successful as Reims netted more goals than in any of their previous three top-flight seasons, but only just. Hugo Ekitike was one of the reasons why Reims were better offensively. The forward came from obscurity to impress and has since been loaned to PSG. This might not be the body blow it seems as he spent much of the second half of the season injured in any case. What might be a more positive influence, however, is the return to fitness of Arber Zeneli. He was superb after an ACL injury last season, despite not being at his full capacity. Reims will be excited to see what level the Kosovan can unlock on the wing this term – and they still have a capable forward in El Bilal Toure if he can get his mentality correct. Reims have also lost influential goalkeeper Predrag Rajkovic, who was a stalwart of their side in recent seasons – and a penalty-saving specialist. Austrian Patrick Pentz has come in to replace him but is an unknown quantity at this level. Indeed, it has been the defence that the Champagne club have focused on improving. Andreaw Gravillon’s move from Inter has been made permanent while Emmanuel Agbadou has arrived from Eupen for a significant fee. Maxime Busi, meanwhile, returns from Parma to provide cover on the left. Surprisingly, no one has been signed to replace Ghislain Konan on the left, suggesting the club is ready to put faith in promising youngster Bradley Loko. Reims’ midfield needed no surgery. It is a solid unit with capable players, while the arrival of Junya Ito on the right is a big investment that they will hope pays off. Reims are overstocked with mediocre attackers, but filter out the deadwood and there is a reasonable core of players there, albeit not the most consistent in Ligue 1.