Joseph Okumu was not part of the squad as Reims got beaten 3-1 by Patrick Vieira’s Strasbourg in Ligue 1 action.
Reims felt the full effect of missing Harambee Stars defender Joseph Okumu as they lost 3-1 away to Strasbourg on matchday 29 of Ligue 1 action.
Okumu had been stellar in the last two games for Reims, producing consecutive man-of-the-match displays, but missed the clash, and they were made to pay dearly by Patrick Vieira’s charges.
The Kenyan defender has made 21 Ligue 1 appearances since signing from Belgian outfit KAA Gent last July.
Kevin Gameiro opened the scoring for Strasbourg from the penalty spot in the 44th minute, before Abakar Sylla and Sahi Dion scored two goals in the second half to completely kill Reims.
Keio Nakamura had scored early in the seventh minute to initially give Reims hope.
With this win, Strasbourg now sit in 11th place with 36 points, while Reims remains in seventh place with 40.
There are six games left on Reims’ schedule to make a push for one of the European competition spots for next season, but they’ll need wins.
The schedule will present the squad with a challenging end to the 2023-24 season as they face teams like Marseille, Rennes, and Brest.
Will Still and his team have won just one of their last four matches (one win and three draws). Despite the lack of recent victories, Reims trail OGC Nice by four points for fifth place, so there’s still the possibility of playing in European competition next season.
