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London City Lionesses head coach Jocelyn Prêcheur spoke with reporters on Friday [10 January], previewing his side's Adobe Women's FA Cup clash with Fulham.
Transcript | Jocelyn Prêcheur on Fulham clash
We’re into the second half of the season and it’s an exciting time for London City – how are you and your players feeling?
As you said, we are very excited and very motivated. We’re ready to work hard and give the best version of ourselves on the pitch to have the best chance of being promoted to the Women’s Super League.
You play Fulham this weekend, after playing another lower-ranked side in the previous round. Have you been able to analyse them as usual and what have you made of them?
We always try to prepare the most we can and Fulham is not an exception. For the last three weeks, one of our analysts has analysed them very deeply and I have done the same. This is why this competition is so special – because anything could happen. If we want to reach the next stage, whoever the opponent is, we need to stay very professional and give the best version of ourselves on the pitch. This is the kind of mindset that I like my team to have.
Playing at Craven Cottage, one of the most historic stadiums in England. It will hopefully be a big crowd, watching your team on a Premier League pitch – you must be really excited about that…
We’re very grateful for the opportunity to play at Craven Cottage for many reasons, the history of the stadium is very special and having more people watching the game, for the promotion of women’s football, is just wonderful. Both teams are possession-based and like to put on a show when they play, so the quality of the grass is very important. I’m grateful and excited about coaching in such a famous stadium.
How far do you think London City can go in the FA Cup – it’s unusual to see Championship sides make it to the latter stages of the competition, but could your team be the exception?
That’s a problem for me to answer because you will call me arrogant if I say ‘the final’. However, if I tell you another answer, it means that I don’t believe in my team. I will say the usual answer – we’re hoping our journey will be as long as possible, which depends on manner things.
As I said before, this competition is so special. I’m very proud to coach in the FA Cup, even as someone who isn’t from this country. This is a competition that I have followed for many years in the past.
Before we talk about the future, we need to win on Sunday – that is our priority and there will be nothing else to talk about if we lose. If we are serious, play well, and win against Fulham, we will take it game-by-game and will use all of the resources we have. If we qualify and play a team at the top of the Women’s Super League, we will do our best to qualify again.
If we don’t believe in ourselves and believe that we can do it, there is no need to play. As I said, everything is possible in this competition.
With this fixture being chosen for live broadcast by the BBC, how much do you want to use this as an opportunity to showcase what your side can do to fans who might not be watching week-in and week-out?
Every opportunity to promote London City Lionesses is precious. We’re a young club compared to our opponent on Sunday and many teams in England. It’s a new project and the beginning of something. We are happy to be broadcast on the BBC, it’s a good opportunity to show everyone what’s happening at London City right now and how are building as a club. If we can put the light on our players, I will be very happy with that.
Finally, you made quite a number of exciting signings in the summer – are you expecting to bring any new faces in during the January window?
If you ask a coach, they always want to build. Like everyone, we are working to see opportunities to improve our team. If we have good opportunities, we will, of course. We will work very carefully and try our best to improve.