OL issues a serious warning to PSG

A year ago, Olympique Lyonnais was on the brink of collapse. After a catastrophic start to the season and changes of coaches, since Laurent Blanc, Jean-François Vulliez (interim) and Fabio Grosso had succeeded one another on the Gones bench; the residents of Groupama Stadium, entrusted to Pierre Sage at the end of November 2023, were in last place in the Ligue 1 standings. In fact, the results were not great since they had not managed to take only 7 small points in 14 days (1 victory, 4 draws and 9 defeats). It must be said that they had the worst defense in the league, with 16 goals conceded, and the second worst attack, with only 11 goals scored.

The rest after this ad

OL shows a new face

But the Rhone residents achieved an incredible comeback and even qualified at the end of the season for the 2024-25 Europa League campaign. Having come a long way, since it had one foot in Ligue 2 for a good part of last season, the club chaired by John Textor has moved forward this season. If the Lyonnais still have to resolve their problems with the DNCG, sportingly, they are showing a better face. After 14 days, they are in fifth place in the standings with 25 points on the clock (7 wins, 4 draws and 3 defeats). They also manage to juggle well between the various competitions, since they are in fourth position and guaranteed to be at least play-offs in the Europa League (4 victories, 1 draw and 1 defeat).

Last night's victory against Eintracht Frankfurt (3-2) was precious for Corentin Tolisso's teammates. It was acquired in style, since OL produced some great things in terms of play. All while displaying a good state of mind, despite two goals conceded. Happy last night, Pierre Sage was still smiling this Friday when he appeared in front of the press to talk about Sunday evening's shock against PSG. “Frankfurt is not the only big team beaten by OL but they were really strong. The opponent that comes is of equal or even greater caliber, I think. It will be a good test with this advanced state of fatigue and 48 hours less recovery.”

The rest after this ad

PSG is warned

Which doesn't stop him from dreaming bigger with his team, ready to add PSG to his team. “It’s never the time to play Paris Saint-Germain. They are first in the championship. We are going to go there with ambition. We will have to perform well when we have the ball and push them to their limits, but also be effective defensively. We must not make the same tactical errors as last year during the Coupe de France final and the match at home. They have great offensive strength, both collective and individual. Their match on Tuesday was a showcase of what Paris is capable of doing. They create actions and opportunities and can be effective.”

He continues: “when we asked ourselves questions about our ability to conclude our actions, we managed to resolve that so they too will manage to resolve it. You will have to avoid all types of air holes and that requires a lot of concentration. We have to have the best version of ourselves.” Alexandre Lacazette tends to agree with that. “We are not going to find an excuse for fatigue before the match. We will have less recovery than them but we were aware of the schedule. Paris remains Paris. No need to say more about what they represent in France. It's a big team with great players. We have to stay focused on ourselves and do what we have to do.” In particular, it will be necessary to rely on collective strength or a conquering state of mind.

The rest after this ad

A confident Lyon team

Which is totally different from last year, when Lyon was at the bottom of the hole. “We take advantage of the present moment when we have good results even if I don’t sense any big changes in the locker room. Just like when the results were less good, there was no stress. The group lives well, we remain ourselves. We listen more to the coach and the instructions. We have progressed in terms of efficiency in front of goal even if we can still do better. We knew it was going to turn out and that's what's happening. We try more things, because we have more confidence. The group is good, we have better results so it’s easier to try things”assures the General. Architect of this team, Pierre Sage is delighted to see his ideas take shape in Lyon.

“We are able to gain a little ground with football fans. When we manage to make people happy, we succeed in fulfilling our mission. Sunday the test will be called into question because we have 48 hours less recovery than our opponent. We made great efforts, particularly in the high-intensity races. Malick Fofana, for example, completed more than 400 meters of sprint yesterday, which is quite enormous (…) When we were down 3-1 against Strasbourg and won 4-3 in the end, it was a click. We thought we were going to fall back on the same scenarios as last year. Then, we were able to better control our matches. We must accept that our opponents can gain speed when we defend very high. Yesterday, we were able to perform well in space management.” He hopes his team will perform just as well on Sunday evening at the Parc des Princes. The opportunity to show that patient OL is completely cured.

The rest after this ad

For this match, Parions Sport en Ligne doubles your first bet, up to €90
bonus and offers you €10 credit with the code FM10. A 2-1 victory for PSG against OL earns you up to €770.

Follow the PSG – OL match on DAZN. Click here to subscribe and access the match.