Olympique Lyonnais Cafe II [R]

[guignol]

the number one "athletic" activity for girls is not even a sport, it's ballet.

there are two girls in our neighborhood who go to the conservatoire, and my daughter dreams of that like my son dreams of OL.

[DaeHaMinGuk]

The madame I stayed with in Lyon had young neighbors who were 4 and 6 year old girls and they both were always wearing their ballet uniform (leotard?) and practicing walking on their toes.

[guignol]

my daughter has constructed a stage decor she puts up once a week in one end of the living room, puts on her tutu and gives us a performance.

i've spoken about this in another thread, i'll take another occasion to say that ballet can be very catching. it's a shame that lyon, a city where dance is a major part of the cultural scene has so little really classical dance, but my daughter has DVD's of about a dozen great performances and i really enjoy watching with her... even her brother stops and watches, especially the really athletic bits.

[guignol]

i've noticed it before: the guardian really has the hots for us! here's a recent article:

Can Lyon win the Champions League?
No longer satisfied with lording it over everyone in France, Les Gones' are determined to be kings of the continent.

The question is simple: can Gérard Houllier do what he was employed to do? The former Liverpool manager was not hired in 2005 to guide Lyon to a fifth consecutive French title (Les Gones' squad is so much better than anyone else's in France that a comatose baboon could have done that); his mission is to deliver Champions League glory.
Lyon have reached the quarter-finals in the last three seasons, the first two times under Paul Le Guen and then under Houllier. This year they've blazed to the top of their group, scorching Real Madrid in the process, and are in with a realistic chance of becoming only the fifth side to win all six group games and the first to do so without conceding a goal. So will 2007 be the year they become the first French club to be crowned European champions?

[No, I haven't forgotten about Marseille's 1-0 defeat of AC Milan in the 1993 final, I'm merely deleting it from the records. Which is precisely what Uefa should have done after it emerged that Bernard Tapie's side had eased their preparations for the final by bribing three players from Valenciennes, their domestic opponents four days before the big game in Munich. OM were stripped of their French title and kicked out of the following season's Champions League but were allowed to hold on to their European crown. Scandalous. As is Milan's participation in this year's tournament.]
Anyway ... Lyon. They may not be as swashbuckling as they were under Le Guen but they're definitely tighter. While Houllier has nominally retained Le Guen's adventurous 4-3-3 formation, the increased work ethic he has instilled means it turns into a 4-5-1 faster than it ever did under Le Guen. It is to Houllier's credit that despite losing Michael Essien and Mahamadou Diarra in successive summers, he has managed to produce a phenomenally hard-working team packed with pace and power. Only Chelsea and Liverpool's midfield, and perhaps an incontinent cow, cover as much grass as Lyon's, and neither of the English duo manage to combine a steely spine with genuine sharpness out wide. Lyon, by contrast, are seriously jagged on the edges, at least on the left where rampaging full-back Eric Abidal (rumoured to be Arsenal-bound) combines superbly with the increasingly thrilling Florent Malouda. The right may be less menacing, but the erratic Sidney Govou certainly has his moments and is ably abetted by either of the two right-backs, Anthony Réveillère or Frédéric Clerc.

Réveillere and Clerc are both French internationals - two of 10 in the Lyon squad, a fact that neatly encapsulates their impressive strength in depth. Even excellent goalkeeper Grégory Coupet has a decent stand-in, as Rémy Vercoutre demonstrated recently when an injury to the regular custodian gave him a rare appearance. Perhaps the only two players for which Lyon do not have ready-made replacements are Malouda and the imperious Juninho Pernambucano.

If Lyon have basically adopted the shape of France's 1998 World Cup holders, then Juninho is unquestionably the Zinédine Zidane figure - and only marginally less inspired than the original. He is, quite simply, one of the best, most underrated midfielders in the world. Because in addition to being the planet's finest set-piece specialist, Juninho offers an exquisite range of passing, slinky dribbling and unparalleled shooting. And he's not a poncy playmaker à la Ronaldinho: like Zidane, he can put the boot in.

There are four possible obstacles in Lyon's path this season. Juninho's absence through injury or suspension would be the biggest. When he's out, his place goes to Tiago, the artful Portuguese who came from Chelsea when Essien went to Stamford Bridge. Tiago is dainty, at times even delightful. But he's no Juninho.

The second is Lyon's lack of a top-class striker. Fred, who is expected to return from injury in January, is a Didier Drogba-style handful, but not as dangerous. Karim Benzema looks exciting but teenagers tend not to be reliable. And all John Carew brings to the party is a poor impression of Peter Crouch. Even though France effectively won the World Cup without a cutting striker and both Liverpool and Porto have clambered to the European summit with blunt spearheads, Lyon know their bid would be bolstered with a better goal-getter. They have made signing one their top priority for the January transfer window. Juventus's David Trezeguet, Ajax's Klaas van Huntelaar, Saint Etienne's Frédéric Piquionne and - wait for it - Newcastle's Michael Owen have all been mentioned.

So the striker problem may be resolved. The third obstacle, then, could be the trickiest: Houllier himself. You might think Lyon have immense self-belief, borne of overwhelming domestic domination. And the fact that on three separate occasions this season they've come from 1-0 down with six minutes to go to win 2-1 suggest you'd be right. But niggling doubts remain. They are very aware, for instance, that despite their overwhelming supremacy in France over the last five years, they have failed to clinch a domestic double, consistently slipping up in knockout tournaments. And, of course, they know that in 2005 and 2006 they botched a Champions League quarter-final when they had victory in their grasp.

Houllier was brought in in 2005 specifically to address these doubts. He was charged with hauling the club from the ranks of the very good into the pantheon of the European greats. This, of course, is exactly what he failed to do at Liverpool, where he succeeded in getting the club back on the straight and narrow but couldn't lift it to higher ground. Why? Because to complement his school teacher's discipline and method, he suffers from a school teacher's lack of boldness.

This was alarmingly clear in last season's quarter-final failure. After being lucky to escape with a 0-0 draw in the first leg (which Juninho missed through suspension), the Lyonnais were superb against Milan in the San Siro and, with the score at 1-1, seemed set to progress on away goals. With 15 minutes to go, Houllier was consumed by conservatism and hauled off Sidney Govou to replace him with Réveillère, surrendering the initiative to Milan who duly snatched two late goals. This was exactly the sort of caving-in that Houllier had presided over in 1994, when his France side quite spectacularly bottled their attempt to qualify for the World Cup: needing just one point from their final two games, Houllier's side, paralysed by fear, lost at home to Bulgaria and Israel. Houllier now says he has learned from these gutless blunders. We will see.

Oh, and the fourth obstacle? Chelsea.

Paul Doyle
Monday November 20, 2006
Guardian Unlimited

all in all very nice, especially the first parts.

[guignol]

http://www.cahiersdufootball.net/images/diapo/ol_12victoires.jpg

they really have to start taking an interest in football at C+, it will save them from asking stupid questions.

from http://www.cahiersdufootball.net/diaporama.php?pageNum_rs=1&totalRows_rs=454&PHPSESSID=8f6ac1b6996213794e29bbbe41e799a4

[Allez Lyonnais]

http://www.sport365.fr/medias/sporever/faro/49431_FARO_281106.jpg

[guignol]

what have i been telling you? if you can't find any others, reading les cahiers du football is sufficient reason in itself for learning french. :D

http://www.cahiersdufootball.net/article.php?id=2332&PHPSESSID=7105ae7dfb86df65db9546e01633e725

[guignol]

and for the THIRD month in a row, OL tops SI's world soccer rating! :eek:

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2006/writers/jonah_freedman/11/30/rankings/1.html

[lefutur]

and for the THIRD month in a row, OL tops SI's world soccer rating! :eek:

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2006/writers/jonah_freedman/11/30/rankings/1.html


wow :cool:

[Inara]

::hearts Lyon::

I just sawthe Lens-Lyon game, and while watching it, I realized that there were so many reasons I love this team.


Reasons I Love Lyon


Lyon is a juggernaut. The more they win, the more momentum they gain.

Everytime a refereeing decision goes Lyon's way, the other team cries because they know Juninho has a fifty percent chance of turning that free kick into a goal.

Lyon have the same attitude whether they play Real Madrid or Nantes - which is to crush them down into dust.

They punish teams severely for being audacious enough to sit in second place (Bordeaux, Lille, Marseille, Lens...).

Reserve goalkeeper Remy Vercoutre is the first person who will come up to the touchline to celebrate a goal - and he's the one who plays the fewest matches.

Ligue 1 officials are seriously thinking about delocalizing Lyon to Spain or Italy so that the Championnat becomes "fair" again.

After every match, managers from the opposing teams insist that they played perfectly and that Lyon won only because the referees helped them.

The players celebrate a goal the way others celebrate the birth of a child.

Juninho. Juninho. Juninho.

Lyon isn't shy about putting faith in their youngsters. These past few months saw Benzema, Ben Arfa, and recently Bettiol given a chance to shine.

They have the best team play, hands down. Not even Barca has as much smoothness between players.

They make obscene amounts of money by selling off their top player each summer and immediately finding a great replacement that promises to be even better.

You know that Edmilson, Essien, and Diarra are annoyed that Lyon is doing so well without them.

For the most part, there isn't any shady behind the scenes club drama, with player bust ups and secret meetings with other clubs. At least that we know of...

Every other club president curses Aulas while at the same time trying to copy his methods.

Twenty years ago, Lyon was in the second division of the French league. Lyon was nothing until Aulas took over, and within four years, he not only achieved promotion but got Lyon into European competition. Aulas turned Lyon into a French powerhouse, expanding its revenue and getting rid of its debt. So Lyon is also far more financially stable than its French counterparts. He basically took the little fish from the little pond and turned it into the biggest fish in the big pond.

Domench could field an entire starting XI from the players he selects from Lyon.

Even without four strikers, they still manage to humiliate their nearest rivals with four goals. You wonder when Cris will be used as an attacker and when Coupet starts scoring goals.

Tiago is so cute when he's happy on the field. It just makes you say, "Aww, we love you too."

Lyon's worst player (my pick is between Carew, Berthod, Remy, and recently Cacapa) is still loads better than most other bench players in other top European teams.

And just because they keep on winning. They never get lazy or take a back seat. :)

[DaeHaMinGuk]

::hearts Lyon::

I just sawthe Lens-Lyon game, and while watching it, I realized that there were so many reasons I love this team.


Reasons I Love Lyon


Lyon is a juggernaut. The more they win, the more momentum they gain.

Everytime a refereeing decision goes Lyon's way, the other team cries because they know Juninho has a fifty percent chance of turning that free kick into a goal.

Lyon have the same attitude whether they play Real Madrid or Nantes - which is to crush them down into dust.

They punish teams severely for being audacious enough to sit in second place (Bordeaux, Lille, Marseille, Lens...).

Reserve goalkeeper Remy Vercoutre is the first person who will come up to the touchline to celebrate a goal - and he's the one who plays the fewest matches.

Ligue 1 officials are seriously thinking about delocalizing Lyon to Spain or Italy so that the Championnat becomes "fair" again.

After every match, managers from the opposing teams insist that they played perfectly and that Lyon won only because the referees helped them.

The players celebrate a goal the way others celebrate the birth of a child.

Juninho. Juninho. Juninho.

Lyon isn't shy about putting faith in their youngsters. These past few months saw Benzema, Ben Arfa, and recently Bettiol given a chance to shine.

They have the best team play, hands down. Not even Barca has as much smoothness between players.

They make obscene amounts of money by selling off their top player each summer and immediately finding a great replacement that promises to be even better.

You know that Edmilson, Essien, and Diarra are annoyed that Lyon is doing so well without them.

For the most part, there isn't any shady behind the scenes club drama, with player bust ups and secret meetings with other clubs. At least that we know of...

Every other club president curses Aulas while at the same time trying to copy his methods.

Twenty years ago, Lyon was in the second division of the French league. Lyon was nothing until Aulas took over, and within four years, he not only achieved promotion but got Lyon into European competition. Aulas turned Lyon into a French powerhouse, expanding its revenue and getting rid of its debt. So Lyon is also far more financially stable than its French counterparts. He basically took the little fish from the little pond and turned it into the biggest fish in the big pond.

Domench could field an entire starting XI from the players he selects from Lyon.

Even without four strikers, they still manage to humiliate their nearest rivals with four goals. You wonder when Cris will be used as an attacker and when Coupet starts scoring goals.

Tiago is so cute when he's happy on the field. It just makes you say, "Aww, we love you too."

Lyon's worst player (my pick is between Carew, Berthod, Remy, and recently Cacapa) is still loads better than most other bench players in other top European teams.

And just because they keep on winning. They never get lazy or take a back seat. :)

Well said.

To add to that, Lyon is just a marvelous city to visit, and I'm sure to live in. My heart is in that city and with OL.

[lefutur]

"You must spread some Reputation around before giving it to Inara again."

[lefutur]

Well said.

To add to that, Lyon is just a marvelous city to visit, and I'm sure to live in. My heart is in that city and with OL.

I'm seriously thinking of moving to Lyon

[THE SOS]

the best part about Lyon is the people. I hate Parisians. With a passion. Loathe doesn't quite cut it...how about enmity? but the lyonnais are simply delightful. Everyone's conception of the French are based on the surly parisiens, but the people of Lyon are the exact opposite.... (sorry a bit biased as I grew up in the Rhone-Alps and fur-wearing parisians treated me as if i were dog shit for speaking in a manner that did not meet their scrutiny, I add a 'quoi' at the end of the sentence and they act as if I'm nothing more than a begger!)

[lefutur]

the best part about Lyon is the people. I hate Parisians. With a passion. Loathe doesn't quite cut it...how about enmity? but the lyonnais are simply delightful. Everyone's conception of the French are based on the surly parisiens, but the people of Lyon are the exact opposite.... (sorry a bit biased as I grew up in the Rhone-Alps and fur-wearing parisians treated me as if i were dog shit for speaking in a manner that did not meet their scrutiny, I add a 'quoi' at the end of the sentence and they act as if I'm nothing more than a begger!)

its funny. i'm always telling Americans that the reason french people are considered snobs is mostly because of Parisians. my parents are from Bretagne and the people there are humble and very warm....the opposite of most people in Paris.

[Anti-footix]

well, I have lived in the lyonnaise region for the last 15 years, including 5 years in Lyon, and I can say : snob lyonnais = snob parisians.
at least parisians have real reasons to be snob.
I must say I hate the "bourgeoise lyonnaise", especially those little "fils à papa" I knew at the university.
Lyon is known for being a snob city in France, like Paris and Bordeaux. it is a cliché, but a lot of people in Lyon help the cliché to stay alive.

and by the way, great post by Inara :cool:. I would not have said it better, exept for the Tiago thing :D

[guignol]

well, I have lived in the lyonnaise region for the last 15 years, including 5 years in Lyon, and I can say : snob lyonnais = snob parisians.
at least parisians have real reasons to be snob.
I must say I hate the "bourgeoise lyonnaise", especially those little "fils à papa" I knew at the university.
Lyon is known for being a snob city in France, like Paris and Bordeaux. it is a cliché, but a lot of people in Lyon help the cliché to stay alive... i've also lived in lyon for 15 years, and i know the snobs you're talking about exist, in the quartier d'ainay and the bd des belges, but i've never met many, except when i taught english at sciences éco and did summer prepa for the concours IEP, and frankly i've met a lot worse snobs in the states than they were.

as for any city in the world, the lyonnais de souche represent only a weak percentage of the total population: cities are not closed clubs but just gathering places for people from lots of different regions and countries, and lyon is particularly cosmopolitan, i'm living proof!

[Gnafron]

Half of my family being from le cours Vitton and le quartier d'Ainay i feel i have to interfere somewhere in the conversation. :D
First of all Lyon is one of the least aristocratic city of France and it is true that some of the oldest families are still in the strict catholic pattern where money is nothing an work everything. It is also a very cosmopolitan city, these families are often of foreign descent (mostly northern Italy: Lombardia, Piemonte, Veneto, Emilia Romagna & Toscana but also Germany, Austria and Switzerland). One of the oldest virtu here is to consider friendship as a sacred value: you don't give it or share it like that and it may take time (or even years :rolleyes:) before getting that friendship but after that you'll become a part of the family. Everyone is welcome, whatever your origin as long as you share the "old" and sometimes hard to pair values (hard working, "vivons heureux, vivons cachés": never ever show off, life is spiritual or is not, carpe diem, sense of humour, etc…).
Things have changed during the last 20 years because of the huge amount of people coming from outside Lyon, it's far easier now to settle in.

[Catfish]

Sorry to jump into this thread, but it extremely fascinating for me to read what a city and it's people are truly like from those you live there. Also I tip my hat to all of you, being so passionate and yet respectful at the same time. It seems to be quite rare on BigSoccer.

[Allez Lyonnais]

http://www.football365.fr/medias/sporever/faro/50312_FARO_191206.jpg