PLAYER RATINGS | Lyon 2-0 Lorient: Endrick sparks Lyon’s return to winning ways
PLAYER RATINGS | Lyon 2-0 Lorient: Endrick sparks Lyon’s return to winning ways Olympique Lyonnais put an end to their nine-match winless run thanks to an impressive second half performance against FC Lorient, orchestrated by half-time subsititute Endrick. The win lifts Paulo Fonseca’s men to fifth in the table and only two points behind third-placed Lille OSC. The Match Lyon came into the match low on confidence, while draw specialists Lorient, lining up with five at the back, clearly set their stall out to defend deep and hit the home side on the break.
Unsurprisingly, then, the first half was one to forget, as les Gônes dominated possession but lacked the guile to find a breakthrough. A Roman Yaremchuk header over the bar was their only chance of note, while Lorient came closest to scoring with the last move of the half, a superb Dominik Greif save keeping out Bemba Dieng. Things needed to change and Fonseca made a triple substitution to begin the second half, introducing Orel Mangala, Corentin Tolisso and Endrick – dropped to the bench after his poor attitude against Angers in Lyon’s last match.
The Brazilian did not take long to make his mark: within five minutes his pin-point cross allowed Roman Yaremchuk to score his first Ligue 1 goal; seven minutes later he muscled his way to the by-line, his cross-cum-shot deflected off Yvon Mvogo to Tolisso, who headed home. Lorient opened up more after falling behind but, with Pablo Pagis having an off day, les Merlus rarely looked likely to come back into the match. They remain in ninth place while Lyon leapfrog Stade Rennais and AS Monaco to put themselves firmly back in the Champions League conversation.
Lyon Player Ratings Dominik Greif – 7 How many points has he won for Lyon this season? Two superb saves, one at 0-0 and one to preserve the two-goal cushion, plus mulitple claims from crosses and long balls Steeve Kango – 5 With almost all Lyon’s attacking play coming down the left, Kango was not able to show his attacking instincts. Generally solid at the back but turned by Kouassi a couple of times.
Substituted at half-time. Clinton Mata – 5 A generally solid performance, although also embarrassed by Kouassi and was fortunate that the striker was flagged offside. Moussa Niakhaté – 6 Like Greif, such a reassuring presence in the backline.
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