At the Stade Pierre Mauroy in Lille, the final of the 107th edition of the Coupe de France refereed by François Letexier will pit Olympique Lyonnais against Paris Saint-Germain. Faced with the Parisian ogre, who defeated Stade Rennais in the previous round, Pierre Sage’s men will have the opportunity to end the 2023-2024 season in apotheosis after an eventful exercise to say the least. Long bottom of Ligue 1, the Rhone club finally secured an unexpected qualification for the Europa League and can now dream of a title. The first since 2012.
However, Les Gones, who eliminated Valenciennes in the semi-finals, will have a hard time facing the French champions, determined to (re)lift the trophy after two years of drought, with the coronations of Nantes in 2022 and Toulouse in 2023. For Kylian Mbappé’s last outing under the tunic of the Rouge et Bleu, the semi-finalists of the Champions League hope, in fact, to end this year in style and confirm their national supremacy, they who have already won fourteen finals in this competition for only five defeats.
A shock at the top to close the season!
Deprived of Sergio Rico, Presnel Kimpembe and Lucas Hernández, Luis Enrique should then line up a 4-3-3. In goal, Gianluigi Donnarumma is logically expected and should be protected by a defensive quartet composed of Achraf Hakimi, Marquinhos, Lucas Beraldo and Nuno Mendes. In midfield, Warren Zaire-Emery, Vitinha and Fabian Ruiz should be associated. Finally, if the Spanish technician suggested that he was going to start Kylian Mbappé, the Parisian attack could be completed by Ousmane Dembélé and Bradley Barcola.
For his part, Pierre Sage, who wants to continue writing his history in the north of France by taking his revenge on PSG after the defeat (1-4) suffered at the Parc des Princes in April, should opt for a 4-3 -3. Having started Cup matches since his arrival, the 26-year-old Brazilian goalkeeper, Lucas Perri, is once again expected in the Lyon cages. In front of him, Ainsley Maitland-Niles, Jake O’Brien, Duje Caleta-Car and Nicolas Tagliafico will form the defense. In the midfield, Nemanja Matic and Maxence Caqueret will accompany Corentin Tolisso. Finally, Ernest Nuamah and Saïd Benrahma should support the inevitable Alexandre Lacazette.
