Football Season Guide

Lyon have endured a nightmare summer that comes off the back of a campaign in which they finished seventh, effectively confirming their weakening status in French football after being the dominant club in the 2000s. Indeed, it has been four seasons since they finished in the top three and the chances of that duck being broken appear to be nil. The preparation of Lyon has been catastrophic on the field. Performances and results have been dreadful, while key players such as Bradley Barcola, Rayan Cherki, Maxence Caqueret and Castillo Lukeba have returned back late after international duty and all have transfer speculation hanging over them. Head coach Laurent Blanc, meanwhile, already seems to be feeling the pressure, with owner John Textor notoriously short fused. On top of this, Lyon were threatened with relegation due to their poor finances – driven by their American owner. OL’s squad has been slashed in numbers over the summer. Five players have been sold for fees, with Thiago Mendes the most notable of these in the first team last season, but losing the likes of Moussa Dembele and Houssem Aouar on free transfers was a bigger blow. OL have barely moved to replace these figures, with right-back Clinton Mata and Sochaux youngster Skelly Alvero coming in along with Southampton centre-back Duje Caleta-Car on loan. It is an uninspiring transfer campaign. Once again, Lyon are set to lean on their academy, with the combination of Barcola and Alexandre Lacazette highly impressive last season. More is expected from January arrivals Jeffinho and Amin Sarr, while Cherki will be expected to rise further in prominence after finishing last season well. Caqueret will be expected to be a force in midfield after Corentin Tolisso had a mixed campaign last time out, while OL will have to answer questions over their defensive capabilities both in terms of their group work and individually – they are too prone to errors, with experience no longer an excuse.