The period of revival was short-lived. Algerian winger Adam Ounas suffered a setback at LOSC.
Critiqued in the first half of the season for a physical condition far from optimal, Adam Ounas seemed to finally take off after his return from the AFCON. The former Nice player had been making appearances, including three starts in Ligue 1, compared to none before his departure for international duty, until the defeat against Toulouse (3-1) on February 25.
His coach, Paulo Fonseca, had expressed satisfaction. “He understands that he’s reaching a decisive moment where he can do things differently from what he did in the first half of the season. I think he has changed mentally,” the Portuguese said in a post-match press conference. However, he added a warning as a wise technician. “He must understand that he’s reaching an age where he must choose what he wants for the rest of his career. He has time to change things because he has a lot of qualities. He’s a different player, but he must first have the right attitude,” he cautioned.
Training delays, insufficient efforts
He couldn’t have been more right. For his old demons returned to haunt the Chambray-lès-Tours native. Injured in the calf afterwards, the left-footer missed four matches then played six minutes against Brest (1-1), nine against Lens (2-1), and finally 120 seconds against Marseille (3-1) last April 5th. Last week, he wasn’t selected for the trip to Aston Villa (2-1), in the first leg of the Europa League quarter-finals.
According to information from the Petit Lillois, the player was guilty of several training delays, which led to him being sidelined by the Lille staff. He was informed of this during a clarification meeting with his coaches. Furthermore, his efforts are deemed insufficient. As the season draws to a close, the Dogues want to make the most of the players involved to secure a Champions League qualifying spot.
The situation is even more worrying as his teammates struggled to motivate him. With his contract expiring at the end of the month, Ounas will likely have to find a new destination.
