Ligue 1 Review | Lyon’s incessant decline testing John Textor’s relegation denialism
Bar John Textor, who continues to live in denial, everyone around Olympique Lyonnais is aware of the danger that the club are in, of the reality of relegation to Ligue 2.
“This team is not at risk of relegation. Teams that get relegated in any country, in any league do not play like we played tonight. You don’t see that kind of quality in teams that go down. We don’t look down the table, we look up the table. We risk having a very mediocre season. That bothers the hell out of us. But whoever is talking about relegation is just stoking fear and creating stories. It’s good fodder for conversation, but it’s a bit of a joke. I don’t take it seriously […] it’s nonsense,” said Textor after Lyon’s defeat against Clermont Foot (1-2) in late October.
The American owner’s defiant tone seemed at complete odds with reality. Lyon have quality in their squad, few would deny that. Players like Rayan Cherki, Maxence Caqueret, and the increasingly peripheral figure of Mohamed El Arouch will all go on to have bright futures, whilst the experience of players such as Dejan Lovren, Corentin Tolisso and Alexandre Lacazette should theoretically create a well-balanced squad.
However, for players to perform on the pitch, things need to run smoothly off of it. That has not been the case OL and it hasn’t been for some time. The DNCG’s transfer restrictions, imposed over the course of the summer transfer window, certainly hampered Les Gones’ start to the season, whilst the decision not to sack Laurent Blanc was, by Textor’s own admission, a mistake.
Whilst Blanc was far from the source of OL’s malaise, as events since have more than proven, there was a toxic atmosphere around the club at the start of the season. Sarcastically remarking that you will
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