Masala looks to spice it up

Paris, May 5: When you don’t have money, you need good ideas. That could be the motto of Stephane Masala, the coach who took third division Les Herbiers to the French Cup final in which they face the mighty Paris St Germain on Tuesday.

With a budget of about $2.4 million compared to PSG’s 540 million, Les Herbiers barely stand a chance on paper against a team who have won the last three editions of the competition. But Masala is an Italian football fan and he has been trying to instil that culture into a squad who knocked out two Ligue 2 sides on their way to the Stade de France showdown.

“My father, who is from Sardinia, had recorded all the Italy games from the 1982 World Cup,” the 41year-old Masala, whose voicemail message is the Italian anthem “Fratelli d’Italia”, said.

“I got the virus early on, I have always had this Italian football mentality, where the tactical work is super important,” he said.

Masala, who says he will probably not watch the World Cup next month because the Italy have failed to qualify, is a Juventus fan and he has a subscription to an Italian coaching website, allenatore.Net.

Masala’s main inspiration is Massimo De Paoli, the former Head of Youth Development at Brescia who developed the “Spaccare lo spazio” (break up the space) method.

Although Les Herbiers have been struggling in the National championship (third division), where they lie two points above the relegation zone, PSG have the utmost respect for them. “It’s a final, it’s the Coupe de France. If they got to the final, they deserve it,” said PSG coach Unai Emery.