Óscar García: ‘I like to develop players while being really competitive’

A lot has changed since Stade de Reims pushed Real Madrid all the way in the first European Cup final in 1956, losing 4-3 as they showed off their famous “Champagne football”. After winning six titles between 1949 and 1962, the club dropped down the French football pyramid in the 1990s and only established themselves as a Ligue 1 club in the last decade.

Things are now looking up in Champagne country. Óscar García, the former Brighton and Watford coach, took over last summer and started a quiet revolution. He pivoted the club away from workmanlike and established senior pros, many of whom quickly departed, towards a vibrant youth system.

Flooding the first team with teenagers who had been developed at the club’s modern academy was a risky move, but García’s inexperienced, unproven side eased to an impressive midtable finish. Their young striker Hugo Ekitike has since left for PSG in a €30m move – the club’s biggest ever sale – but García starts the season with a squad full of talented young players who are ready to make their own jump to the next level.

What’s the mood around the club at the start of the season?It’s going to be a very demanding season, with the World Cup in the middle and four teams going down from Ligue 1. It is always a competitive league but this year everyone expects it to be even more challenging. We’ll face it with confidence, with similar methods that paid off last year. The first goal is to keep the club in Ligue 1 as soon as possible and then have enough time to aim higher. In the last 10 games maybe we’ll start looking at the table to see what we can achieve.

You have done a great job of bringing through academy players. Was that the plan when the club approached you? Was it your decision or