The situation is simple for OL. A success in Brest this Saturday (5 p.m.), and he would enter the top 4. To do this, he will have to regain his level of play, which he has lost for three outings now.
We might as well get our feet wet right away, Olympique Lyonnais has a huge opportunity to do well this weekend. Friday, two competitors on the podium, Monaco (in Nantes) and Lille (in Auxerre) were held in check. Result, LOSC (4th) and ASM (3rd) are respectively one and three lengths ahead of the Pierre gang Sage. It travels to Brest this Saturday at 5 p.m. for the 17th day of the championship.
On paper, a trip to the 12th is not what we could call a “shock”, but the opponent will be no less dangerous. Better at home than away, Eric’s group Roy knows how to transcend himself, we saw it in the Champions League. More in difficulty in Ligue 1, it however lost against all the other teams in the top 7.
Reviews of the game »legitimate“
OL would therefore like to be no exception to the rule, but for that, they will have to show a much better face than during their last three outings. “When we have intellectual honesty, we must accept that, sometimes, we play well without imposing ourselves, and from time to time, we win without playing well. We also know full well that if we don’t play well for very long, we risk not winning much. If we have ambitions as we display them, it is necessary to do better, to doinsisted Pierre Sage. So, we took care of our game this week. And the criticisms are legitimate.“
The coach is aware that the defeat in Paris (3-1), and the short successes against Feignies-Aulnoye (1-2) and Montpellier (1-0) did not convince. The players know it too. “We know that in the last matches, we did not play our game, acknowledged Duje Caleta-Car. But we didn’t talk much. We watched the videos and we know what we need to improve. The last meeting was difficult, it was the first of the year. But we won, that was the most important thing.”
Lots of play this week in training
Having everyone on the same page is a good thing. Now, it remains to be seen how to regain these positive benefits observed before that. The coach detailed his method. “We need dynamism, football, all the elements that were missing against the Montpellier team, we want to bring our game back to what it was. The best way to achieve this was to play a lot this week in different spaces, to ensure that the players touched as many balls as possible in conditions of adversity, he explained. We had some very good sessions, it’s rather encouraging compared to previous performances.”
For Pierre Sage, it was necessary “put the players back in a game situation, coordinate with each other […] With the recovery, players have lost certain habits. Some interactions have softened, he observed. As a result, it was necessary to reconnect the players. Understanding between them, understanding in their movements. And also putting it into action.”
Do not make excuses and respond on the ground in Brest
Will the Rhodanians attack Francis Le Blé, the lair of the Brest corsairs? After a complicated start-up in 2025, everyone wants to believe it. “We’ve been playing a lot lately, so maybe we’re tired and that can explain our recent performances. Against Montpellier, we had to find the rhythm again. In recent days, we have worked well, so I think it will be better against Brest“, affirmed Caleta-Car.
In any case, the Croatian defender is not worried about OL. “I think we had this moment of rest which really allowed us to regain energy. We are not worried given the quality of the players we have, confided the former Marseillais. Despite this bad phase, we must rediscover our fundamentals: working as a team and enjoying being on the field.”
Not wanting “not make excuses despite elements of context explaining these performances“(Pierre Sage), Olympique Lyonnais has simply recovered”very seriously and diligently at work”. If the results follow despite everything, he hopes to have left this slack behind him in order to take advantage of the missteps of his competitors. With the transfer window in the back of my mind, it may not be obvious, but it would be stupid to ruin everything now, when the door has just opened a little to the Champions League. Before being able to cross it, there is still a way to go, but for OL, the first stage takes place this Saturday, in Brest.
