Olympique Lyonnais
PSG confirm Neymar’s ankle injury
Ligue 1 giants Paris Saint-Germain say an initial assessment of key forward Neymar’s ankle injury has been “reassuring”. The Brazilian striker was stretched off in Sunday’s loss to Olympique Lyonnais, with the Paris side saying on Monday that he had sprained his left ankle, adding that further examinations will be carried out in the next 48 hours. In the extra time of the tie, the 28-year-old went down screaming in agony and clutching his ankle after a poor challenge from Lyon midfielder Thiago Mendes, who was thereafter sent off with a straight red. “The medical examinations carried out on Neymar are reassuring following his twisted ankle in Sunday’s game against Lyon,” PSG said. The club, and Neymar in particular, will hope the damage is not too deleterious and does not rule him out of t...
Mikel Arteta expects difficult January transfer window
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta says the club do not have much room to manoeuvre in the January transfer window and may have to offload players before they can add to the first-team squad. Arsenal are reportedly looking for a creative midfielder, with RB Salzburg’s Dominik Szoboszlai and Olympique Lyonnais’ Houssem Aouar among the options being considered, while Arteta would also like to improve his defensive options. “We are planning, talking with (technical director) Edu and with the club about the things we can do in January,” Arteta told reporters. “But at the moment it’s pretty difficult, unpredictable as well. In terms of places, we are very restricted in the moment. “We will need to do something knowing the limitations of that market in January and the limitations we have as well to si...
Lyon set deadline for Memphis Depay’s departure
Olympique Lyonnais have set Barcelona an ultimatum on signing their forward Memphis Depay this transfer window, as per Diario AS. The report cites how Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas has told French media outlet Telefoot: “I think I will tell the players that all those who did not leave on Friday will remain at Lyon. As of Friday there will be no more departures.” It is reported how he is referencing both Memphis and midfielder Houssem Aouar – who has been linked with a switch to Arsenal. The Blaugrana are keen on a move for Memphis but it remains unlikely that they will be able to finance a deal, despite clearing Arturo Vidal, Ivan Rakitic and Luis Suarez from their wage bill. Memphis, 26, netted 11 goals across his last 18 matches for the Dutch national side and has also developed into ...
Lyon return empty-handed with prospect of losing key players
Had Olympique Lyonnais’ Memphis Depay and Karl Toko Ekambi found the back of the net in the opening 16 minutes against Bayern Munich on Wednesday, the Champions League may have had its first ever all-French final. Instead, Paris St Germain will now face the German champions while Lyon return home empty-handed and without the opportunity of righting those wrongs next season after they failed to qualify for Europe’s premier club competition. Ligue 1 was the only top-flight league from the ‘Big Five’ to prematurely end its season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving Lyon in seventh place on a points-per-game basis — thereby missing out on the Europa League as well. The 3-0 scoreline flatters Bayern as Lyon had their chances but playing in only their second semi-final on the big stage, their ...
Champions League now a thorn in Pep Guardiola’s side
With the millions they have invested in top players and with the most respected coach of his generation in charge, Manchester City should be doing much better than going out of the Champions League in the last eight. But after their shock 3-1 defeat by Olympique Lyonnais on Saturday that is exactly what City have done in the last three years. Guardiola was brought into the club, by their Abu Dhabi based owner Sheikh Mansour, after his predecessor as manager, Chilean Manuel Pellegrini had taken the club to the semi-finals of the Champions League, while also winning the Premier League title. And while Guardiola has brought two Premier League titles, smashed records and produced some of the most glorious football the club’s fans have ever seen — European success remains elusive to his team. C...
Bayern must stay focused – coach
Bayern Munich players will only let their stunning 8-2 UEFA Champions League quarter-final victory on Friday sink in for a day. Club head coach Hansi Flick believes, however, that if they are to win the title they still need to work hard. Flick, who was assistant coach of Germany in their historic 7-1 demolition of hosts Brazil en route to the World Cup title in 2014, said his players now needed to stay grounded. He said this was necessary ahead of a semi-final against either Manchester City or Olympique Lyonnais. Hi. Today we had a game against the junior team. I scored two goals. Now at home watching a movie. bye — Philipe Coutinho (@Phil_Coutinho) September 3, 2011 “You know that I do not look back because only the here and now matters,” Flick told reporters when asked about comparisons...
