This is the biggest match of the season for Nice. It is their last match EVER at Stade du Ray before moving to the new Allianz Riviera for the next season.
What an AWESOME start to the year! Six wins, one well fought out draw and a marginal 1-0 loss in
8 matches since January. 8 matches in which Lyon has scored 19 goals.
Celebrations of victory over derby rivals Saint-Etienne in the Coupe de la Ligue Round of 16
turned sour following news of further injury to crucial squad members. Long time back up keeper
Rémy Vercoutre and in-form winger Michel Bastos made their way into the injured list.
It was this cup victory that sparked the rise of the club in the decade gone by. Coupe de la
Ligue is back for another year. Olympique Lyonnais may have moved to bigger, better and eventually
more elusive title challenges lately, but a Ligue cup remains an important opportunity not only for
clubs from lesser tiers to challenge the top teams, but for established teams to try out the depth
of their squads.
After 2 decades of derbies (during which Lyon supporters have grown in confidence whereas Les Verts fans, with no nails left to bite, stopped hoping that their team would one day topple the powerful Rhone neighbour) there has been one hiccup, a St Etienne win that prompted the demise of Claude Puel.
Against a team of Nice who managed to take 20 points out of 24 possible in the last eight days (8 games without a single loss, ie 6 wins and 2 draws, best series running in L1), Lyon want to end a bad run. Aulas's boys have not won the last game before the winter break in Gerland since December 21, 2000 .
No, no, please don't thank me. I know you've all been grateful for the fact that I heroically
resisted the urge to post every day in order to tactfully avoid you saturating, dear readers of
this blog.
To be honest there wasn't much to be said anyway, as apart from a few high profile transfers the
French transfer market was as flat as ever.
Tonight's new battle of the Olympiques is one that will make history.
Being a Coupe de la Ligue final, its result will be carved in stone. The name of the winner will
be added to the list of glorious predecessors, those who at least once have been the heroes of this
recent but well publicized competition.
Lyon are out of the Champions League and the title race, but they are still in the hunt for some
silverware. Today's quarterfinal match against PSG could further revitalize Lyon's campaign or
plunge it back into misery.
Wednesday, March 21th, 2012
Parc de Princes, Paris
3:50 PM ET (20:50 CET, 19:50 GMT)
Match Background:
People keep saying that PSG owes its success to money, and that is partially true.
At last! Claude Puel having finally received his letter of dismissal, will probably move south,
to Spain... or wherever. What matters now is that the club finally announce today what had been
rumoured for several weeks now : Rémi Garde is our new coach.
With this nomination, the club will now be able to fully devote themselves to the reconstruction
of a squad that should be amputated by some of their best elements : Jeremy Toulalan being gone,
the likes of Bastos, Cissokho, possibly Kallström, Ederson and pretty much anyone who's not deemed
absolutely untransferable.
A step further in importance : that's how this last game compares to the emotional rollercoaster
that last year's ultimate game was. Because not only will it condition our final ranking, but it
will also be the end of a cycle, and possibly several.
First cycle ending : the 2010-2011 season
There's no need to comment on this overall disappointing season, bar a respectable run of 13
unbeaten games following the derby lost in St Etienne in September.
Pressure cooker ready to burst, or bowl of overboiled noodles?
Difficult to anticipate the spirits in which the players will face Lens today. A week after the
draw against Nice (2-2), much has been leaked, distorted, or exaggerated, about the atmosphere
within the squad. Yes, Hugo Lloris exploded after the match, on his way back to the locker
rooms.
In a fortnight of international football in which half of the Lyonnais have gone missing,
selected for their respective international duties, Claude Puel and his staff said they nonetheless
managed to have interesting training sessions with the few souls remaining along the Rhône at the
Tola Vologe training facility, progressively incorporating their returning colleagues.
25 or 7 ?
25% vs 7 times. That pretty much sums up the whole uncertainty around this game. Statistically,
Lyon only have a 25% chance to qualify after the draw (1-1) conceded at home, three weeks ago. But
this small percentage is opposed to the record of confrontations between the two teams, largely in
favor of OL : 7 games against Real, 0 loss.
Where the Lionceaux (the cubs) meet Lyon... This saturday, the FC Sochaux-Montbéliard,
unbeaten in three matches, hosts the Olympique Lyonnais, currently fourth before this 27th day of
Ligue 1. The Lyonnais have the opportunity to overtake Marseille and reach the third step of the
podium, getting closer (at 1 point distance) to the leader, Lille, until they play on sunday, and
to Rennes who lost to Marseille (2-0).
Jean-Michel Aulas speaks to the press (often), sells his club (always), can speak without
compromise (sometimes), and on occasions be perfectly candid (rarely). It just happened now in a
Lyon Capitale interview published today, and, as it addresses the concerns of many readers of this
blog, I thought I should share the key points with you.
Funny how time passes sometimes... Had Lyon's calendar been different, the resounding win last
weekend against their worst enemy, Saint-Etienne (1-4), would have lifted the club for weeks; but
due to the incoming hurdle in CL next week (who said wall ?), this win was quickly set aside to
concentrate on José's Jazz Band coming to Lyon.
Let's be honest, while I sometimes imagine how fun it could be to be a sport journalist when I
watch Rennes' coach Antonetti or PSG's Kombouaré giving a press conference, I never get carried
away too long as I suddenly realise that would also mean attending Claude Puel's press conferences.
And then for some reason my dream ends suddenly.
A crucial encounter. Rather than a pleasant wine contest between Cotes du Rhône and Bordeaux,
tonight's game will leave at least a big gun with a sour taste in the mouth... And, it'd better be
Bordeaux, if you ask me.
Remember... this must have been a century ago : Bordeaux versus Lyon, a Champions League quarter
final.
A cold shower. That's about how I felt watching the Coupe de France game against Nice last
Sunday. With the interest and hope aroused by the two previous Ligue 1 and Coupe de France games,
we were prepared to celebrate a fairly easy win. I had draft text messages ready to send to the few
Nice supporters I happen to know : "good game, too bad".
The second half of the season is about to begin, we have our eyes set on that first game against
Lorient, but there are a couple of interesting things that have been said or done around the club
lately.
Has Liverpool hired a new manager yet? No? Right, moving on...
* Moneyball moneyball moneyball moneyball. Or maybe not. Over on the Anfield Wrap, Gareth
Roberts drops a weighty article that moves beyond the oft-used term in an attempt to plot just
where Fenway Sports Group may try to take Liverpool in the coming years, with a focus on
Soccernomics, the recruitment of 20-22 year olds, success through the purchase of troubled talent,
and Lyon:
So while they have had six managers since 2000—Jacques Santini, Paul Le Guen, Gerard Houllier,
Alain Perrin, Claude Puel and current boss Remi Garde—the president and Bernard Lacombe—who has
been technical manager, trainer, manager and now special advisor to the president—have
remained.
Olympique Lyon host nine-times winners Real Madrid at the Stade Gerland hoping to
continue their impressive run of form against the Spanish giants.
Played six, won three, drew three and lost exactly zero. Yes that is zero. With statistics as
such, it is easy to see why Olympique Lyon have become Real Madrid's much proclaimed
‘bogey-club'.
Lyon coach Claude Puel said his side would face a "better balanced" team than the Real Madrid
that they beat at this stage of last season's UEFA Champions League yet, despite the absence of
Lisandro, he believes they are in the mood to repeat that success. Madrid have lost in the round of
16 six years running but José Mourinho is not looking to the past.
Lyon coach Claude Puel said his side would face a "better balanced" team than the Real Madrid
that they beat at this stage of last season's UEFA Champions League yet, despite the absence of
Lisandro, he believes they are in the mood to repeat that success. Madrid have lost in the round of
16 six years running but José Mourinho is not looking to the past.
LILLE, France Lisandro Lopez and strike partner Bafetimbi Gomis scored a goal each Sunday as Lyon
beat Toulouse 2-0 at home to move up to third place and two points behind Ligue 1 leader Lille.
Lopez had a bit of luck opening the scoring in the fifth minute. Toulouse goalkeeper Matthieu
Valverde saved a [.
While we wait for the rest of the midweek matches in Europe and notably the return of Didier
Drogba to Marseille, let us take a break from Champions League football and review this weekend's
action in Ligue 1. Day 16 in France illustrated just how open the title race was with now only 4
points separating 1st place Lille from 10th place Montpellier.
LYON, France — Striker Bafetimbi Gomis scored a late equalizer Tuesday as Lyon drew 1-1 with Real
Madrid in the first leg of their last-16 meeting in the Champions League, denying the Spanish team
its first win against the former French champions. Brazilian defender Cris headed on a free kick
and Gomis clipped the ball [.
Kobenhavn vs Chelsea from Parken Stadion, Copenhagen
Already the Danish champions have made history by becoming the first Danish side to play in the
knockout rounds. Of course similar to a few clubs who's domestic league shut down, Kobenhavn are no
different and they say the break has actually helped them prepare for this challenge.
Yes you have Jack. On a clothesline that you were a chief architect in imagining, building,
stealing from, hiding behind, and using to line your pockets for over two decades.
I love how he hid behind his role as guardian of fellow Caribbean nations only to bully them all
into kowtowing to his every whim.
Lille's attacking midfield star Eden Hazard has reiterated his "dream" of signing for Arsenal,
with Arsene Wenger looking to make those dreams come true in the summer.
The Arsenal manager's main priority for the January transfer window is to bring in a defender
if Thomas Vermaelen continues to struggle for fitness, but he plans to give serious consideration
to a move for Hazard in the summer.
PARIS, France Victor Montano's second-half penalty gave Stade Rennes a 1-0 victory over struggling
Monaco that took them top of Ligue 1 on Saturday. Elsewhere, Lisandro Lopez struck his second goal
of the game deep into stoppage time as Olympique Lyon rose to third with a dramatic 2-1 win at
Montpellier.
