Football Season Guide

Rodez steamed to the Championnat National title last season, running out winners of the third tier by a massive 14 points, having suffered only four defeats over the course of the whole season. Moreover, they scored more goals than anyone else in the division and conceded fewer, offering them a terrific platform to attack Ligue 2. Under the guidance of head coach Laurent Peyrelade since 2015, they have had a settled squad and over the course of the summer have lost only defensive midfielder Jeremy Mellot of the players the coach might have had in his plans for this season. Also going is striker Florian David, who was their top scorer last season with seven goals, but this was a squad that typically shared the strikes around and did not rely on any one player in particular. In any case, his departure was expected given that he was only on loan. Three other loans have been made permanent: Yohan Roche from Reims, David Douline from Clermont and Nathanael Dieng from Grenoble. Otherwise, for the coming campaign, Rodez have sought to improve the depth of their squad, though they have limited resources and have been unable to pluck away many proven players at this standard. As such, they have plumped for squad players such as Corentin Jacob and Valentin Henry, who arrive from Brest, and Francis Dady Ngoye, who arrives from Grenoble. There is no area in the squad that looks especially strong for this level, though in the heart of the park they do look well stocked with defensive players, notably former Sochaux man Loic Poujol. If they can translate their well-balanced offence in the third tier to become successful at this standard, or if their defence remains as solid as it did last term, they will be well positioned to have a competitive campaign.