“I hope history repeats itself”
Posted by Aurélien Canot, Media365 on Tuesday, January 10, 2023 at 1:05 pm.
In Poland, Dylan Nahi (23), who has played under the colors of Kielce for two years, will also play in the first World Cup of his young career with the Blues from Wednesday.
Dylan Nahi, how do you approach these Worlds?
Hopefully we’ll treat them well enough because we’ve worked hard in the friendlies we can, as well as in training. We are focused and ready for this first big game against Poland on Wednesday. In the Tournoi de France, we played against two big teams, the Netherlands and Poland. It went pretty well, we won this first French Tournament, which is great.
Is the French team approaching these Worlds with the sole aim of winning them?
After all, the most important thing will be to focus on each of our opponents and go to matches one after another. After that, for all the big nations in this World Cup, our aim is to go as far as possible and aim for the best possible place. He is already going through this first match against Poland.
As in the recent World Cups and Euros, can it be considered a failure to stand at the door of the final again?
We will try to focus on ourselves first and try to apply all the work we have done after the Euros are over. We worked hard in bodybuilding, training and preparatory matches. It will be very important for us to start this race well. Then we’ll go match after match.
You will compete in your first World Championship. How will you approach this?
This is my first World Cup, so I will try to concentrate as much as possible. I am always happy to be in the France team and to wear this shirt, it will also be a way to show that I belong here and that I will give everything for the team and my country.
What will be expected of you personally?
I have to concentrate, take the matches one at a time. After that, I know I have to do what I know to help the team and we will move forward together as much as I can. We’ll all do our best anyway, because in the end we all want the same thing.
“Poland? A big entrance exam”
This also applies to Nikola Karabatic, who will still be involved, and Vincent Gerard, who recently proved again…
These are two players who are really important to us, especially because of their great experience with the Blues. It is more to have them with us.
Who should France fear first? We are thinking of Sweden and Denmark…
The teams to be afraid of are the teams from our pool (Poland, Saudi Arabia and Slovenia), because if we don’t get through the pools, we won’t go any further (laughs). In my opinion, our top three opponents are the most feared. Then we’ll see the rest.
Is Kielce definitely special for you, playing one of the best Polish teams with the first game against Poland in Poland?
It’s nice to be able to play against Poland in Poland. Later, especially, no, because there are all the international matches. Of course, it will have a special flavor because I will be playing in Kielce against my teammates or some players I played against in the league. It will be fine.
Can we talk about a big test for the Blues?
All first games are very important. For this, the whole community will be behind the Poles. Their fans and families will be there to support them. All of Poland will be behind their team for this match, which will be a great entrance test.
What are the main assets of this Polish team?
He has very good players. The Poles have an excellent right midfielder, Morito (Nahi’s teammate in Kielce). They have left-back Szymon Sicko on fire. They already have good players everywhere. They also have good goalkeepers and good pivots. It will be a complete game and it will be up to us to show that we can beat them at home.
When you made your debut in the French national team, Poland was also your opponent. What memories do you have of this first match in the selection?
I have only good memories about it, because we had a good match (on October 26, 2017, Nahi and the blues beat the Poles 29-15 in the Golden League). I hope history repeats itself. It’s really nice to find them. Especially in a competition like this.
“If you lose to Plock twice in Poland, you cannot become a champion”
What made you fall in love with Poland and this city of Kielce, where you have been developing for two years?
I don’t know how to explain it. I immediately felt very comfortable in the group, as in the city, it happened naturally both with the coach and with my teammates. This exuberance in the matches meant that… I like this club, I feel good in Kielce. Am I leaving at the end of my contract? I have a contract until 2025 and I am very happy to be in Kielce today.
You said that you have two years left on your contract with Kielce. Do you think your team can be number 1 in Poland and on the European stage at the same time?
Every ball is the same for the European team: we all want to be number 1 and we all want to win. The next goal is to continue winning as many titles as possible. Starting with the title of national champion, trophies and of course this very popular Champions League. These are very clear and logical goals for a team like Kielce.
You are talking about the title of Polish champion. Are you not very above?
It’s not about outdoing the rest, it’s about taking it game by game, working and giving yourself a chance to win every game. After that, of course, there are two big teams in this championship, Plock and us. It is very complicated because the title is often played with two teams. We are currently second in the league, precisely because we lost to Plock early in the Clasico. It will be up to us to win the second leg to ensure we can win this title. Because if you lose to Plock twice, you can’t be a champion.
