Garcia eager to end winless run

Lille coach Rudi Garcia says his side are looking to return to winning ways when they face Troyes in Ligue 1 action on Saturday.

Garcia’s team may have finished third last season but have struggled so far this campaign, having posted just one win on the opening day – an unconvincing 2-1 victory over St Etienne.

Since then, Lille have drawn with strugglers Nice and Nancy before losing to the previously winless Paris Saint-Germain in the week before the international break.

Speaking on Thursday, Garcia told reporters he naturally had one eye on next week’s Champions League clash with BATE Borisov.

But he said his team simply could not afford to take the winless Troyes lightly, despite the newly promoted club sitting in 19th on the Ligue 1 table.

“We saw the end of a good series of results with the defeat against Paris,” Garcia said.

“If we want to do well in the league, we need to quickly find the positive pass and get a positive result.

“That means it starts with this match at Troyes.”

Garcia was adamant he was not looking too far ahead, saying the Troyes clash was more important to him at the present time than the Champions League encounter next week.

“Before every match, the upcoming match is the most important one,” he said.

“It’s not just something we say – It’s true.

“Sometimes it seems a bit like this. When you look at the calendar before the start of the season, you see matches that can seem less important because they are scheduled before or after big, high level games.

“But when you come to the match, you realise that each game is the important one at that moment in time because three points is three points in the championship.

“And, it could be the very thing that sees you move up to a good position in the rankings.”