In a match where OL were trailing, and while one of their flashes of genius had found Georges Mikautadze to reduce the score before the break, the exit of Rayan Cherki just after the hour mark (66th) surprised all the observers of the meeting, and in particular the Lyon supporters. Inevitably, the question came up at a press conference and Pierre Sage first refuted that Cherki's tendency to rezone displeased him. “There are the indications beforehand and what happens on the ground. I would never release a player because he is out of zone,” explained Sage.
“He was starting to only make efforts in one direction”
On the other hand, Cherki posed another problem: his lack of defensive work. The Lyon coach did not hesitate to point out a lack of work in this area, which left PSG too much freedom to evolve effectively. “Conversely, he brought us a lot offensively but he was starting to only make efforts in one direction and it was becoming dangerous for the team. Wanting to get back on track is one thing, but we had to ensure balance. And don’t leave space on the right side for PSG,” pointed out the Lyon coach.
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To summarize
Pierre Sage surprised everyone by taking out Rayan Cherki during the PSG – OL match. But the coach had very specific reasons to be unhappy. Indeed, the defensive work of the Lyon attacking midfielder was not to his liking.
