Only four points in the first five games – the start of the season went well and truly wrong for Olympique Lyonnais. Admittedly, the starting schedule was challenging for the seven-time French champions, with games against Marseille (2-3), Monaco (0-2), and Lens (0-0), but those in charge at Olympique had still hoped to be among the top teams in the league after a summer of record investments.
However, the last five games went significantly better. The team from the Rhône-Alpes was boosted by the 11 points gained from those matches – Lyon is now sixth in the table.
In the UEFA Europa League, on the other hand, it was the other way round: after two opening wins against Olympiacos Piraeus (2-0) and Glasgow Rangers (4-1), Lyon recently lost to Besiktas (0-1), but are still absolutely on the right track.
Pierre Sage, however, is still missing a reliable goalscorer in his ranks. In Ligue 1, none of the players have scored more than three times, though the 19 year old Belgian player Malick Fofana has scored five goals across all competitive matches. However, the forward, who transferred to Lyon from KAA Gent in the winter and made his debut for the Belgian national team in October, is by no means ready yet – and coach Sage also has too many alternatives in attack. Whether it’s the experienced Wilfried Zaha, Said Benrahma and Alexandre Lacazette, top goalscorer from the Euros Georges Mikautadze, or the African top talents Ernest Nuamah and Gift Orban – in attack, Olympique Lyonnais have an exceptional range of players at their disposal. Yet none of these players have reliably been able to score.
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