Corentin Tolisso (OL) (Photo by OLIVIER CHASSIGNOLE / AFP)
Ahead but endangered by Qarabag, OL were able to rebalance things by switching to 4-3-3 with the entry of Tolisso. A paid choice from Pierre Sage.
Lately, there has often been a gap between what the scoreboard indicates and the content of OL matches. For once, this worked in favor of the Rhone club. Against Qarabag on Thursday, he initially suffered, before finally being freed by two goals in five minutes from Corentin Tolisso (0-2, 63rd) and Malick Breathing (0-3, 68th). Result, a clear 4 to 1 success, very good in accounting terms, but which does not say everything about the game against the Azerbaijani team.
Pierre Sage also sent the message after this third victory in the Europe League. “The result is positive, but the score is flattering. By changing the system, it was better. The opponent could have scored one or two more times because we encountered a big defensive tactical problem. He would have deserved to at least equalize in the first half, he pointed out. The game would have been totally different. In the attitude and commitment of the players, we can be satisfied. The fact that the atmosphere was maintained throughout the match is also linked to Qarabag's performance.”
OL struggled in transition, taking advantage of Qatabag's generosity
This is the important point of this summary from the Lyon coach, the transition after the break from 4-2-3-1 to 4-3-3, which allowed OL to be more balanced. “Following the return of Tolisso, it was not perfect, but we were better defensively with this reorganization, noted the 45-year-old technician. We could recover the balls and hurt transitions, especially on the first goal (by George Mikautadze) and in the second half too. We took advantage of the fact that they were doing a lot to plant banderillas by performing well on rapid attacks.”
Far from being perfect, Thursday's performance may have provided some answers for the Rhone coach. Always looking for THE right formula, he had plenty of time to observe this strategically interesting duel. “I am happy with the response given by these players, but the meeting and its outcome are linked to the tactical aspect. We had difficulty closing the inside, and when we managed to do so, it went outside, Sage explained. Having an extra element in the middle row solved the problem, but not completely. In the second half, we were scared by losing the ball.“For once, the team gave in, but did not completely break up.
