Lens humiliated 9-1 by Como: Cahuzac retained despite 'total fiasco'

Yannick Cahuzac keeps his job as RC Lens head coach despite the historic thrashing inflicted by Como (9-1) on Wednesday evening, during the fourth matchday of the Champions League league phase. Sporting director Jean-Louis Leca made his position public, ruling out any resignation or dismissal.

“Did Yannick Cahuzac offer me his resignation after the defeat? Not at all. Nobody is thinking of leaving. Neither him, nor us. We would have refused it,” Leca said. The executive nonetheless acknowledged the scale of the disaster, calling it a “total fiasco”, without singling out individual players: “What’s certain is that at some point, we should have shut up shop.”

To put the gulf in class on display into context, Leca recalled the conditions under which the club had approached its previous European campaign: “During the 2023-2024 Champions League campaign, we recruited 66 million euros in the off-season and we had a wage bill 15 million euros higher than the current season.” An argument intended to provide perspective, without erasing the severity of the result.

At half-time, already trailing by three goals, Lens players discussed with Cahuzac the need to limit the damage. But Como’s fourth goal, scored as early as the 47th minute, definitively swung the match and made any comeback impossible.

Despite the shock, Leca refuses to overhaul everything. He relies on encouraging performances in recent weeks to justify his confidence: “I know it’s a fiasco, but there have been good things lately despite everything, and that shouldn’t erase it all. We’re groggy, but we have to move forward and believe in ourselves.” The executive concluded by already looking ahead to the next match against Olympique de Marseille: “It’s tough, but we have our pride. Today, I just want us to go back out there against Marseille.”