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Olympique Lyonnais: The Lyons Will Leap Again

Started on 6 July 2014 by pompeyblue
Latest Reply on 2 September 2014 by pompeyblue
  • POSTS230
  • VIEWS60833
Very good signing!
tallery: Thanks dude. You're most certainly right, the future is bright! Rhyming skills to pay the bills B) Okay I will stop...

Josh: Cheers Josh, nice to hear!

Jonte-23 Thank you man, he should beef up our defence that's for sure :)
Some great signings! Juninho sure knows how to use the market, eh ;)
2014-07-16 07:01#184557 pokarioboy : Some great signings! Juninho sure knows how to use the market, eh ;)

Thanks dude, he sure does ;)
pompeyblue's avatar pompeyblue
10 yearsEdited

Disagreements.




Going into the job, I knew the club weren’t in the best of situations. Having won so many consecutive titles, and then all that success ending so abruptly, something must have gone badly wrong. A loss of key players, a decline in form and as I had recently found out a lack of funds.

I was promised so much, I promised so much. This was a new era for the club, glory would return. All of this, with a £3.8m budget? It just isn’t possible. The signings drafted in are all very good players but that is where it seems to have stopped. I may be showing ambition, but the club and more importantly the board aren’t.

I may not be far into my managerial tenure, in fact we haven’t even played a game yet, but I’m not afraid to take action. I slam the door of my office, grabbing my cup of coffee before I leave, walking swiftly. I have an important meeting to get to.

”Sit.”, he says in a firm voice as I enter the boardroom. Jean-Michel Aulas, the owner of Olympique Lyonnais.

He gives me a glare, as I place my coffee on the table and take a seat. All eyes still on me, focused and unnerved.

”Look, I am going to cut to the chase. I am here to bring about a new era, that is what you wanted isn’t it? How am I supposed to do this with so little of a budget?”

”I am the chairman, and ONLY I make the decisions around here. You’re inexperienced as a manager, as much as you are liked by the fans I don’t really care. Work to your budgets and work to your targets, that is your job as a manager.”

He’s cocky, arrogant and exactly the sort of boss I don’t want. Who does he think he is talking to? I had no answer to this though, it’s true he was top boss and he makes the decisions. But he was so arrogant, and unwelcoming. He was so different.

”You are the manager and are to do as I tell you to do. There will be no changing of your budget. Now, get out of my sight. I don’t want to see you or hear you protesting this issue anymore. LEAVE.

He says his final words as if they are a commandment and caring not for the other board members, I pick up my coffee from the table and march out of the room. There is no point in putting up a fight, its clear Jean isn’t going to change his mind.

5 minutes later, back in my office, the rage settles in. I thrust my foot into the wall. Letting all the frustration from my body was all I could think about doing right now. It showed how much this club means to me.

Having this fool in charge, it doesn’t look good for the future. When becoming manager, just a few weeks ago, he seemed delighted. He was overjoyed that I was at the club. I am Juninho, after all. How it has changed quickly. Too quickly. No budget, no promise, was this club really on the up? Or was it all lies, as Olympique Lyonnais piles into more misery.



Great update, as always. And I agree with you: you need to challenge in the league, with that small of a budget. Near impossible! Good luck nonetheless in this undoubtably hard season!
2014-07-16 20:57#184717 ASR-PSV : Great update, as always. And I agree with you: you need to challenge in the league, with that small of a budget. Near impossible! Good luck nonetheless in this undoubtably hard season!

Cheers man. The budget is really frustrating, but if we do manage to achieve something that makes it that much better, by being able to work with little money ;)

A Fresh Approach.




Three signings. It looked as if it was all I could get done. With time ticking before the start of the season, and still no change from Jean, we would have to make do with what we have got. Would this be enough to challenge at the top of table? Hell no. Our tactics, my tactics, were what would make or break our season.

I was still undecided on the system to go with, however. It was certain that the club needed a fresh approach, but which formation was the right fit for my players, for the new signings. I just didn’t know. As for my new signings, I had already began evaluating them in the training sessions they have participated in so far.




First, we have Mexican goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa. After a very impressive World Cup for his country Mexico, a good season at Ajaccio and the fact he was a free transfer, I made no hesitation in bringing him to the club. A good goalkeeper was something we were lacking, so Guillermo certainly strengthens this area significantly. He’s a great shot stopper, his reflexes are very good and overall he is in my opinion, an excellent addition.



Our second signing, was English winger Tom Ince. He was wanted by many clubs so to have been able to fight off the interest and bring him to Lyon, was a great capture, and know I am very excited in him turn out in the white shirt. He is still young, so has plenty of room to grow and develop his abilities, even now though he is already a good player who will undoubtedly be key for us this season.



Our third and final signing, was Peruvian central defender Carlos Zambrano. He’s a real talent, and will add a lot of quality to the central defensive role. As you may know, we don’t have huge financial resources at all so to pick up the lad for a little price as we did, is a very good piece of business in my opinion. He’s strong, reasonably quick and all round is a good defender who is still only 24.




Training was over and I was done. I had all my reports, all my files on all my players, and was now sitting back in the comforts of my office. Across my desk lay everything I had, all the information I needed, and a tactics board. In my head, was my vast footballing experience. Now all I needed to do was to combine the two. Creating a winning formula is not as easy as it sounds however.

Then, after much experimentation and deliberation, I finally had my system sorted out.


I had decided to roll with a 4-2-3-1 formation, operating with two holding midfield players, three attacking midfield players and the lone striker. With much of the quality in the team coming from the midfield areas, playing with more midfielders certainly fits the side as does playing with the one striker. With Grenier especially in the side, he will be able to serve up plenty of opportunities to Lacazette who will lead the line, meaning attacking wise we should be a strong force. Defensively too, with the added protection of the two holding midfielders, we should be a solid outfit however I do worry about our squad depth.

We will be playing with the control mentality and a fluidity to our game which will hopefully aid in our success. At the moment, we are lacking a Plan B which is slightly worrying, however with friendlies just round the corner this will give us the opportunity to test with any other formations and tinker the system we will be primarily using.

This is it now. The signings and tactics are done, pre-season is on the horizon and so is the competitive season too. Is the dawn of a new era about to take place, a rollercoaster ride back to the top with Lyon, I don’t know but it should be a hell of an experience for myself as a manager. Eventually The Lyons Will Leap Again, and now the adventure is just beginning.



I like the lay out of the last few updates. And I am really enjoying the story! Live the signing of tom nice too! Can't wait for it to get going properly :)
Looking good, liking the tactic :)
Damn, that update :O Anyhow, good tactic and Zambrano looks like a total beast.
Great signings so far, and the tactic looks very good as well!
Aaron: Thanks man!

pokarioboy: Cheers buddy :D

Josh: Thank you very much, Zambrano certainly looks good so hopefully he will make a big impact at the club :)

ASR-PSV: Thanks dude, the tactic does seem to me as if it will be successful, we will just have to wait and see I guess ;)
pompeyblue's avatar pompeyblue
10 yearsEdited

Pre-Season 2014 - The Perfect Preparation.




So, my first full month as manager of Olympique Lyonnais and my first few games too, albeit they were just friendly games. A positive pre-season could set the tone for my tenure as manager, while a few losses would knock back confidence in the squad considerably and could potentially damage our hopes for the competitive season ahead.



Results.




Our set of pre-season fixtures began with a match against French lower league side GF 38. Considering our reputation as a club we would have been expected to win by a much bigger margin, and we did dominate proceedings, however out experimental line-up could only manage a 2-1 victory with goals coming from Alexandre Lacazette and Clement Grenier. Nonetheless, a win is a win, and it was good to get off to a good start.

Again we faced lower league opposition, this time CS Sedan Ardennes. The win was by the same scoreline as our previous match, 2-1, but the scorers were different with Mohammed Yattara and Maxime Gonalons finding the net on this occasion.

US Senart-Moissy were the next side to matchup to Les Gones. This time we were much more solid at the back, with our clean sheet highlighting this, and looked a better side even if once more our opponents were no challenge at all. Yoann Gourcuff added his name to the list of scorers so far and Alexandre Lacazette also struck home for his second of pre-season.

The competition stepped up just that little more in the next game with an encounter against Ligue 2 side Havre, it didn’t matter though as we cruised to another triumph. Alexandre Lacazette was a danger all game, scoring two goals within a wonderful performance from the striker, while Mohammed Dabo added the third goal in stoppage time to end the game at 3-1.

Another fixture against a Ligue 2 team followed, with Dijon the team to provide us with the opportunity to extend our 100% record. We did just, winning the game 2-0 with the hosts springing no shocks in being incapable to deal with our attacking talent. Unsurprisingly, Alexandre Lacazette was exactly the man who threatened throughout with his goal putting us into the lead before Mohammed Yattara extended the advantage later on.

The last game of pre-season and what was supposed to be the game to test us was against Greek giant Olympiakos. With the challenge of a tougher team, my players upped the ante and we put in a display much more similar as to what to expect in this coming season. The fans witnessed an excellent 3-0 win with goals coming from Yassine Benzia, yet again Alexandre Lacazette and Jimmy Briand.



Player of Pre-Season.



It’s no real surprise that Alexandre Lacazette is the Player of Pre-Season, is it? After bagging 6 goals and 1 assist, he was the obvious choice. He caused huge problems to every defence he came up against, and slotted into my tactic perfectly. If he can carry this form into the new season, then he could single handily bring success to the club as he leads the line, so naturally I am very excited to see what he will do for us.



Juninho’s Judgement.


A 100% record in pre-season, 6 wins out of 6, it could not have gone better. I was delighted with our performances, and we didn’t even hit top gear. The tactic was very effective in all the games played, and the players suited it very well so I am very happy with my decision regarding the system. So, overall I was delighted with the results and am hoping we can continue this standard in competitive games which are forthcoming.


Fantastic pre-season! :D It's all going right so far, keep it up!
Also, I need a side save, would you recommend Lyon?

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