Strasbourg captain criticises BlueCo’s transfer dealings | OneFootball

RC Strasbourg Alsace captain Frédéric Guilbert (29) has criticised BlueCo’s transfer dealings after Les Alsaciens didn’t significantly strengthen in the January transfer window.

Guilbert inherited the captain’s armband at Strasbourg following Matz Sels’ (31) deadline day departure to Nottingham Forest. In the words of president Marc Keller, the Belgian international was a “club legend” at Strasbourg, and his departure drew the ire of the club’s faithful, who have been repeatedly critical of the youth-centric approach, heralded by the arrival of BlueCo in the summer.

Andrey Santos was the only significant arrival in January. The midfielder arrived on a straight loan from another BlueCo club, Chelsea, however, he is currently away on international duty with Brazil. Santos will return later in February, but will only play a maximum of 13 games for Les Alsaciens.

Strasbourg succumbed to a 3-1 defeat against RC Lens on Saturday, and speaking to Prime Video Sport post-match, captain Guilbert attributed, at least in part, the defeat to a lack of squad depth.

“We are being slowed down by injuries. We didn’t bring in any reinforcements this winter so we’re maybe a bit short on the bench. You can see that and that perhaps makes the difference and that’s maybe why we didn’t come away with a draw,” said Guilbert, who has inherited the armband following Sels’ departure.

BlueCo have become used to being criticised by Strasbourg’s fans, who have been vocal in their opposition even before the American consortium’s purchase of the Ligue 1 club became official. However, having their transfer strategy called into question by RCSA’s players is a novel and certainly unpleasant experience for Todd Boehly and co.

GFFN | Luke Entwistle