I was at the game too (paid a huge sum to attend but it was well worth it). Watching the reactions from the players of both teams really showed that this match meant something. The Lyon players were walking around with huge grins and kissing the trophy and the Montpellier players seemed dejected as they watched Lyon during the trophy presentation. They know what this match means before the start of Ligue 1.
Gourcuff played better than I have seen him in a while, though Briand deserved a shot for MOTM. He was very dynamic. Didn't miss Bastos one bit!
was at the game and was lucky enough to get invited to an afterparty that the players and staff attended. was a great day overall. my very first Lyon game in person and they won a trophy in exciting fashion. got a few pics with a few players (gomis, licha, lloris) and also one with remi garde. i was really too shy to have much of a conversation with anyone but i did go up to benzia and told him he did great when he came on and that his first contrôle du pied was amazing. i think either gourcuff, briand or lloris were deserving of the MOTM.
WOow what ridiculous luck. I wanted to stop by some places before the match to try to meet up with people but my carpool got there late.
Thats the one. My friend from Lyon works for a tourism company and is very involved with promoting the city of Lyon in the US. Somehow he was asked to find a french-speaking New York city guide for Aulas that could take care of the hotel and restaurant reservations etc. So at the game he told me there was an afterparty that Aulas and some of the players were expected to attend and said that he had an RSVP for me. Needless to say I was a bit incredulous but of course I said that I wanted to go. And many of the players were there with some exceptions like Gourcuff, Lacazette, and Briand. Gomis made a really good impression on me because he showed up early with the youngsters and seemed happy to be there. He walked in with a big smile on his face and me and my friends and I were applauding and he came right up and shook our hands, and I said "bravo....oh and nice goal!" Aulas made a speech about how Lyon was really happy to be in the US and that with the help of some of the "influential" people in attendance at the reception (not me), Lyon's name and popularity could be spread around the globe. Of course he congratulated the players from both teams for the great display on the field and gave a lot of props to Remi Garde, who was also there. Some other attendees were Youri Djorkaeff, and his father, Jean, and Ligue 1 president Frédéric Thiriez.
That's really cool. I hope this won a few more fans to Lyon, the city and the team, and Ligue 1 in general. The neutrals around me seemed entertained with the match.
There was a woman sitting in the row behind me, and it was her first ever football match. She'd never heard of Lyon until her boyfriend bought them tickets on living social. But by the end of the match, she was so into it! The way she was shouting at the players and the ref, you'd have thought she was a lifelong plan. My favorite was when she screamed at Lloris to keep it together. So. Much. Love.
10 days until the opener. If JMA is going to sell some players he better start doing it. I can't imagine it would be good for team chemistry to throw in a bunch of new guys right before the season starts.
I think he's being too greedy. He wants 10 m for Bastos well he'd better take 7-8 m and call it a day instead of dragging it out. Looks like Steed Malbranque is going to be his replacement from what I've read. He's not getting Sakho and Chantome. That was just a pipe dream. PSG need them for homegrown quotas.
I don't blame him. For the fees being thrown out nowadays Bastos should be worth 10 million. The market is just not there for him, I'd rather he stay in that case.
Would be a great signing for a mid-table Ligue 2 side. Even if he's free and low wage, I just don't see Malbranque adding anything. Although, I'd be happy for him to prove me wrong.
I'm much less attached to Bastos than Hugo, but I agree. I feel like $15m for Hugo is a bargain. I can't find any news stories or anything. Score?
I've never even heard of sharkfoot.fr but I came across some player ratings info: http://www.sharkfoot.fr/2012/08/fc-porto-olympique-lyonnais-0-0-les-notes-du-match/
Milan Bisevac ! I like this rumor. Makes a lot of sense. He wont play much at PSG. Probably doesnt have a high salary either. http://news.maxifoot.fr/info-163152_120807/football.php
a bit simplistic (a few paltry mil here and there aren't going to build OL-land) but yes, the game plan is budgetary constraints => robust financial report => share evolution => grand stade => bigger and better things ahead. you can say what you want about JMA as a club prez (i think he's a pretty good one) but in this kind of exercise he's a frigging genius. it's how he got where he is today, and even if he obviously defines himself first and foremost through OL, "where he is" entails a whole lot more than just that.