Nice – Nantes – Andy Delort: « Being in the final of the Coupe de France, my father still does not believe it »

How do you judge your first season with Nice?

Andy Delort: I’m happy with my adaptation. I know I’m capable of doing much better in terms of stats and performance. I knew I would adapt quickly. It’s a club that looks like me. We are in the South with people who have the same state of mind whether it is the supporters or the people of the club.

What did you come to Nice for?

AD: Finals, being higher in the standings. What we are actually playing: the Cup final and the Champions League.

Is this final the most important match of your career?

AD: Today, yes. I had important matches with Algeria during the CAN. But yes, there is a trophy to go for. An extraordinary trophy. It goes up little by little.

What is this type of match played on?

AD: It is played in the heads, in the preparation. The key is to see how we manage the pressure because there will be a lot of people at the Stade de France. It’s up to us to be ready, to take advantage, to put the right pressure on ourselves. That’s what will make the difference.

Delort, Gouiri, Dolberg, Kluivert: your attack has a big cast but you only have the 11th attack in Ligue 1. How do you explain it?

AD: I have no explanation. There is the language barrier. On the names, the quality of the players, we have to be better. There are more complicated times. I got it three months ago when I had less playing time and I was scoring less. Amine and Kasper are also in a more delicate period. I hope it will come back. Amine and Justin are future great players. Amine made a great start to the season, he got tired. It happens. The most important thing is the final mini sprint that we have left.

Did you doubt in December and January? The CAN was arguing without you, you were no longer a starter in Nice…

AD: No longer a holder? It was only 4 matches… It was my fault, I was less efficient, less efficient. Doubt? Never. I questioned myself, I worked. When I came back, I was decisive in matches that had to be won. It’s often like that for attackers.

What is Christophe Galtier’s role in your current success?

AD: With the coach, we had wanted to work together for a while. In Sainté, we were close, but it didn’t happen. I wanted to work with him. That’s also what made me come here.

What did you say to yourself when he put you on the bench this winter?

AD: I said to myself when I was going to return that things had to be changed. That’s what I did. Against PSG, I score at the last minute. He stole me, he knows how I am. That’s why he’s a great coach.

What is the recipe for having the best of Delort?

AD: The coach knows her. There was a period of adaptation. I feel better and better. We are seeing the real Andy Delort. As soon as I’m like that, I can score at any time and against anyone. It feels good to feel that. At one point, I was less into it.

You remain on 51 goals and 22 assists over the last 4 L1 seasons. In Montpellier, you were like family. In Nice, you have a coach who understands you, a healthy locker room. Do you need this cocoon to fully blossom?

AD: If I’m too alone, I don’t have the same determination on the pitch. I like to be close to supporters, to people. I also have to please those I love. After the match against Lorient, I knew that I had a boules tournament and that I had to score to please the people I was going to play with the next day. And that’s what happened. This is how I walk. It’s my mentality, I’m close to people.

Basically, you need warmth.

AD: Yes. I am a very simple person. If I don’t have that, I’m no good.

Isn’t that a hindrance to succeeding in bigger clubs with perhaps less welcoming locker rooms?

AD: Yes, maybe. But today, I’m 30, I feel good in Nice and I don’t need to look elsewhere.

You have played for eleven clubs in ten years. How do you view your journey?

AD: It’s football’s fault. When I leave Ajaccio and go to Tours, I finish top scorer of the season in L2, I was supposed to sign for an L1 club but Tours wanted to sell me to England. I was not keen to go there… It’s because of football, my decisions. When you’re not ready, you don’t make the best decisions. But I don’t regret anything. I’m proud of everything I’ve done. Honestly, with the life and youth I had, I’m proud to have done everything I’ve done in my career. That’s why the final is important: I can say that I won a new title. It’s just a bonus.

So you have no regrets.

AD: None. When you see the career I have in Ligue 1 or even the title of African champion… This Coupe de France final, I haven’t realized yet… I talked about it with my wife and my father who didn’t still don’t believe it. He invited all his friends from Sète to the Stade de France. He would never have imagined seeing me in the final of the Coupe de France. I am happy for my family. The most important thing is that she’s proud of me.

More than the titles, you seem guided by the desire to convey emotions.

AD: I like to experience moments, when I return to the locker room, when my teammates are proud of me. I’ve only been here 8 months and I’m already very close to the supporters. Bringing the Cup back to Nice is a mission. To score in the final, to bring joy to the supporters… It gives me great strength. I like these matches, tense. If someone has to rock these matches, I try to be the one.

Even in your game, you often favor the beautiful gesture that triggers emotion.

AD: I like to try scissors, daring things. I like the beauty, the good finish, the good goals.

Sometimes even if it means jeopardizing realism?

AD: But you just told me my stats, it’s not too bad isn’t it? My love is to score good goals: volleys, scissors…

To come back to your career, never having played in the European Cup, is that a real lack?

AD: Of course, that’s why I left Montpellier with a twinge in my heart. I was attached. Even today, I am fully behind them, it is the club in my region with which I grew up. I made this decision to be able to play the places above, to try to compete in competitions like the Champions League or the Europa League.

What is your biggest dream today?

AD: Win the Coupe de France and play the best competition with Nice next year.

What if you had to choose?

AD: This one has already been made to me. I take whatever there is to take. I won’t be able to answer you. Impossible.