Sage: ambition and philosophy in the title race with PSG

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·18 January 2026

Sage: ambition and philosophy in the title race with PSG

Pierre Sage, coach of RC Lens, was at the press conference on Saturday night after the 1-0 victory against Auxerre as part of the 18th round of Ligue 1. He was invited to talk about this win, which allows them to move back ahead of Paris Saint-Germain (who won on Friday against Lille). The coach’s comments about the race with PSG are quite particular.

Sage: “When you aim for the moon, sometimes you land among the stars.”

“PSG borrowed our first place, which now belongs to us again for the weekend. Once PSG presses the button, you can’t afford to run out of steam. To chase them, you can’t go at it half-heartedly. We’re not going to lay down our arms, because we can experience something exceptional. This record of ten victories will, once we’re sitting by the fire, allow us to show books to our grandchildren and have stories to tell them. But it’s not a title. We keep this ambition to win one. When you aim for the moon, sometimes you land among the stars,” said Sage, as reported by L’Equipe.

Balancing ambition, high standards, and philosophy, Sage is trying to guide his team towards an achievement. It’s possible—Lens are on a roll (8 consecutive wins in Ligue 1). But the coach also knows the mission will be very difficult, especially as PSG has, in theory, already done the hardest part physically. It will take a lot of work, confidence, humility, and maybe a bit of luck to finish ahead.

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Lens is on a great run of results, though it’s worth noting that yesterday’s match against Auxerre was a bit less convincing. They’ll also have to manage a potential slip-up, since winning every match until the end of the season will be very tough. The title race is exhausting. Lens has strengths, including a coach ready to find ways to motivate the group. It remains to be seen if that will be enough against PSG.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇫🇷 here.