Saint-Etienne vs Stade Reims preview

Posted Saturday, August 16, 2014 by PA

St Etienne boss Christophe Galtier insists his side will be totally focused on Sunday's Ligue 1 clash with Reims and not distracted by their upcoming European encounter.

After last weekend's 2-0 victory over Guingamp in the opening match of the season, Les Verts will look to mark their first home game with another three points.

St Etienne also have their sights on success in Europe after last season's fourth-placed finish earned them a spot in the Europa League.

They meet Turkish side Kardemir Karabukspor over two legs, with the first coming away from home on Thursday.

Last season St Etienne went out at the same stage with defeat against Esbjerg but, for now, Galtier's mind is only on Reims.

He said on www.asse.fr: "I am 100 per cent focused on Sunday's game.

"This is a very important game for us. We had a chance to win against Guingamp and continuing with success against Reims would be nice knowing what awaits us after that.

"We have had eight days to recover. The players are well rested. We must not fall into the trap of preparing for several matches at once. All week we worked on Reims."

Galtier was content with his side's performance in the opening match, saying: "There was a certain stability to our play in Guingamp, even if we can still do better.

"The three points were a tribute to the players' seriousness and determination in training."

Reims will look to build on their encouraging start to the season after holding Paris St Germain to a 2-2 draw last weekend, Zlatan Ibrahimovic scoring twice for the champions.