Fabien Le Floc’h, Media365: published on Sunday, May 10, 2026 at 10:22
Despite their strong performance against Amiens (5-0) on Saturday in the 34th round of Ligue 2, AS Saint-Etienne finishes the season in 3rd place and will have to go through the playoffs to hope to move up to Ligue 1.
A packed stadium, a vibrant atmosphere, and a big victory. Normally, after such a performance, everything ends with smiles and a little celebration in the locker room. But on Saturday night in the Saint-Etienne locker room, none of that happened after the impressive win against Amiens (5-0) in the 34th and final round of Ligue 2. “It’s the first time I’ve seen a locker room sad after a 5-0 win,” admitted coach Philippe Montanier after the match.
If the Saint-Etienne players didn’t celebrate in style after this victory, it’s mainly because Le Mans didn’t stumble against Bastia (0-2), even though the match result is not yet official as it was interrupted in stoppage time of the second half due to incidents in the Furiani stands. “We should have been more careful before, because we should have done the job before,” calmly explained Lucas Stassin, a key player (1 goal and 2 decisive assists) in Saint-Etienne’s success against Amiens.
Montanier: “We get what we deserve”
A feeling shared by their coach. “Of course, everyone is disappointed, but we get what we deserve, it’s before that we should have performed,” explained Philippe Montanier, who, since his arrival, has averaged 2 points per game (26 points in 13 matches). But that wasn’t enough to turn things around and erase the underperformances throughout the season. All is not lost for the Greens, who will have the opportunity to move up to Ligue 1 through the playoffs.
An exercise that ASSE is familiar with, after failing in the playoffs against Auxerre in 2021-2022 and securing promotion against Metz in 2023-2024. This time, the Greens will face the winner of the match between Red Star (4th) and Rodez (5th) at Geoffroy-Guichard before possibly competing for promotion against AJ Auxerre (16th in Ligue 1) or OGC Nice (15th). “In any case, we don’t have a choice,” stressed Lucas Stassin, well aware that the Greens will have to fight to avoid staying in Ligue 2 for a second season in a row.
