Bordeaux defender Gideon Mensah is not giving up hope just yet that his side will escape relegation despite losing to 4-1 defeat at Angers on Sunday in the French Ligue 1.
Mensah played for 58 minutes before being replaced as the visitors lost heavily at the Raymond Kopa Stadium.
Angers took an early lead through Mohammed Ali Cho before Batista Mendy made it 2-0 in the 36th minute of the game.
Sekou Mara halved the deficit after the recess but Cameroonian Stéphane Cédric Bahoken restored the home side's 2-0 lead before Portuguese midfielder Mathias Lage scored the 4th to seal an emphatic victory.
"We have three finals to play, starting with Sunday's. If we don't win, it's not good for the future."
"We must win. In our head, it's not over. The players, the coach, the staff, we believe in us. There are three matches left, we must continue to believe in it," Mensah said prior to the game on Sunday.
"We try to do good things in the matches, we have good intentions at each match. But the small details work against us. Before coming, I knew that Bordeaux was a traditional club that people here liked the club. I know that when you lose the supporters are not happy. That's why we have to do everything in the last 3 matches, to make everyone happy. You have to look ahead.
He added, "Sunday, it will be necessary to have the rage, not to calculate. We must give everything to Angers and we will see after. In our heads, we have three finals to play."
"Of course it's a complicated moment (to find yourself at the bottom of the table) but it's football, and in the head, we are ready. We really want to do things well, for the team and the fans."
Bordeaux will officially be relegated if Saint-Etienne win at Nice on Wednesday night.