Paris Saint-Germain boss Thomas Tuchel admitted there were concerns over Neymar’s injury in the 2-0 win over Strasbourg to reach the last 16; ASSE boss Jean-Louis Gasset was horrified by his side’s capitulation to Dijon.
Wednesday, 23 January 2019
Coupe de France, round of 32
Parc des Princes, Paris
Paris Saint-Germain 2 – 0 RC Strasbourg Alsace 
Thomas Tuchel (Paris Saint-Germain coach): “We started off extremely well. I liked our play and the rhythm we infused it with. The only black spot was taking a while to score our second goal. Putting a winning run together again is very important. I don’t have much news on Neymar, as he is in the hospital. I think he was worried when he went off, as he had hurt his right foot, the one he injured last season and had surgery on.”
Thierry Laurey (RC Strasbourg Alsace coach): “The problem is that we started the match very poorly. Paris caught us off guard at the beginning and, to be honest, we had certain imbalances in certain positions. But I can’t reproach my players; they had to adapt to the situation. We have a few regrets as the players made made the efforts required.”
AS Saint-Etienne 3 – 6 Dijon FCO 
Louis Gasset (AS Saint-Etienne coach): “You didn’t see the real Saint-Etienne tonight. Against OM and OL, that was the real one. We haven’t invested in the cups this season. Still, at the beginning of the second half, things turned surreal. We conceded three goals and went 5-1 down. It was shameful.”
Naïm Sliti (Dijon forward): “There are days like today. Not a lot of them, but they exist! It was an incredible night for us and we didn’t hold anything back. It will give us a lot of confidence for the rest of the season to come.”
St Pryvé St Hilaire FC (D4) 0 – 2 Stade Rennais FC 
Julien Stéphan (Stade Rennais FC coach): “We played a serious match; we prepared well with a lot of respect for Saint-Pryvé, who proved tonight that they’re an excellent team. Bravo to my players for the rigour and commitment. We’re into the last 16 and there’s a long way to go. But why not have a long run?”
Baptiste Ridira (Saint-Pryvé-Saint-Hilaire coach): “Julien Stéphan and I have faced off three times now and we both knew what to expect from this match: two attack-minded sides who played some very good football. We played a great match and wrote a nice page in the club’s history.”
Viry-Châtillon (D6) 0 – 6 SM Caen 
Fabien Mercadal (SM Caen coach): “We took this team seriously, as they had played really well against Angers. We knew we could do well if we attacked hard early. We’ll need to bring that same intensity to get something from our match with Montpellier on Sunday.”
Walid Aïchour (Viry-Chatillon coach): “We weren’t in it in the first half, and I told the lads at half-time that we may well lose but that we should give a good account of ourselves. At any rate, I’d be happy to cop six goals in the last 32 against a Ligue 1 Conforama side every year.”
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