Troyes face Strasbourg without Titi, Boura and Gozzi

Troyes head into their clash with Strasbourg looking to confirm a solid start. The newly promoted side have four points from their first two matches, after drawing 0-0 with Paris FC and beating Lorient 2-1.

Missing players

As L'Équipe reports, Troyes will have to cope without Yvann Titi (cuisse, right back), Ismaël Boura (hanche, left back) and Paolo Gozzi (nuque, central defender). According to the same source, these absences force Stéphane Dumont to reshuffle his back line and rethink how the full-backs provide balance.

On the attacking side, Dumont does have fresh options. The club has brought in two end-of-window loans: Timothé Nkada (27), from Standard Liège, and Jérémy Le Douaron (28), from Palermo. Dumont’s message is that the squad now has different profiles and that he’ll have to get the best out of each one: «On a désormais du nombre et de la qualité, avec des profils différents. C'est à moi de tirer le meilleur de chacun pour que ça serve l'équipe», as quoted by L'Équipe.

Improve the build-up

Beyond the injuries, the coach also points to a performance target. «Pour gagner, on sait qu'on doit encore s'améliorer, notamment en cherchant davantage de verticalité, que ce soit sans le ballon ou avec», L'Équipe adds. In other words: more directness and movement in and around the box, both with and without the ball.

The game is scheduled for Sunday at 15:00, and it will be a good test for how Troyes manages despite the three key absences.