Football Season Guide

Lyon brilliantly salvaged what threatened to be a nightmare campaign thanks to the guidance of Pierre Sage, who steered them away from the foot of the table and into the higher reaches of the standings. OL’s turnaround was partially fuelled by a significant investment in the January transfer market, and they have once again spent significantly in an attempt to secure their place among France’s elite once again. Several of those arrivals are players who were already at the club last season, with Ernest Nuamah, Orel Mangala and Said Benrahma among the players to make their loan deals permanent. This big spending, then, may not result in a dramatic improvement on the field. One exciting new addition is Euro 2024 top scorer Georges Mikautadze, who did wonders at Metz last season and should act as an excellent alternative to Alexandre Lacazette, who will miss the start of the season due to the Olympic tournament. The veteran’s performance all term could feasibly suffer as a result of this and he was vital to their efforts last term. Otherwise, Abner is the only addition of note for OL, with the Brazilian left-back arriving from Real Betis. A major change is possible in goal, with Lucas Perri tipped to take over from Anthony Lopes based on pre-season performances and also displays late term. The only major departure this summer as been Jake O’Brien in the defence. He was a key player last season and one of the few positive surprises over the course of the season as a whole. OL will expect to have the quality to cover for him, having spent big on Moussa Niakhate. The midfield will be held together by Nemanja Matic, who was excellent after arriving in January, with Corentin Tolisso again expected to have a creative influence offensively. Rayan Cherki, meanwhile, is a player whose best level needs to be rediscovered again after some ineffective displays. Similarly, Lyon are overcrowded offensively, with too many players who have not produced an acceptable level since arriving at the club, including Malick Fofana, Gift Orban and Amin Sarr.