At the end of a thunderous second part of the season, Olympique Lyonnais snatched sixth place, qualifying for the Europa League. With an astonishing statistic to boot.
Last in Ligue 1 after eleven days, Olympique Lyonnais believed for a long time that they would not be able to get through it. Laurent Blanc ousted and replaced by a Fabio Grosso adrift on the bench, the Rhone club put everything back on track when choosing Pierre Sage to take up the coaching torch in disaster, and to offer itself a winter transfer window at fifty -seven million euros. So many actions which bore fruit and which allowed OL to take off like a rocket, finally reaching Europe.
Despite his initially very precarious status, Pierre Sage was able to find the formula to put his team back on track, while bringing together a group that was still ranked thirty-sixth below. The trainer also gave confidence to players sometimes sidelined by his predecessor (Alexandre Lacazette), the whole thing turning into a historic comeback, since on the evening of the final day of the championship, Lyon finally finished one unexpected sixth place. Enough to join the Europa League. And yet, he did not hold this rank for long.
Crazy finale
According to a statistic reported Monday by The Team, Olympique Lyonnais only found itself in the Top 6 of Ligue 1 for three minutes and twenty-five seconds. A completely crazy figure, since everything was in fact decided during this famous last round of the championship played on Sunday. Manhandled on their field by Strasbourg, the Gones once again relied on their star scorer, Alexandre Lacazette, to win in the final seconds (2-1), while Lens was taken back in an equally surprising manner , by Montpellier (2-2).
While waiting to play the final of the Coupe de France on May 25 against Paris Saint-Germain, Pierre Sage’s Lyonnais will remember this season with two faces for a long time. Having gone through all the emotions, the Rhone supporters are not expecting a final performance from their players against the Parisian ogre.
