Lyon dominate but can't break down Auxerre
On Friday, September 4, Olympique Lyonnais hosted a struggling AJ Auxerre side under new coach Will Still at the Groupama Stadium in Ligue 1, with the home team dominating possession but failing to find the net early on.
Match action
On Friday, September 4, Olympique Lyonnais hosted AJ Auxerre at the Groupama Stadium in a Ligue 1 fixture refereed by Ruddy Buquet. Lyon controlled the opening exchanges, forcing several chances including a headed effort from Loïs Openda that was saved by Auxerre goalkeeper Donovan Diop. The referee consulted VAR twice for possible penalties – for a suspected handball by an Auxerre defender and after a challenge by Legros on Openda inside the box – but no penalty was awarded either time. Around the 11th minute Auxerre broke forward through Cameron Archer and Rémy Labeau Lascary, but the resulting shot went out for a corner (as reported in Eurosport's live commentary).
According to match data compiled by the BBC, Lyon dominated possession (62.2% to 37.8%) and created more chances, with three shots to Auxerre's one and three corners to one.
A difficult start for Auxerre
Auxerre have made a poor start to the season, losing both of their opening matches and conceding eight goals in the process – 5-2 away at Lens and 1-3 at home to Angers. Discontent has already surfaced among home supporters, with whistles heard at the Stade Abbé-Deschamps. New head coach Will Still, the 33-year-old Belgian, admitted eight goals conceded is "far too many," but argued his side should have been leading 2-1 or even 3-1 against Angers had they taken their chances.
His brother Edward Still, who coaches Belgian club La Louvière, sees parallels with his own situation – both took over from long-serving predecessors (Christophe Pélissier at Auxerre) and are integrating several new signings. Auxerre's transfer window ended with three departures and three arrivals, and Still thanked club majority shareholder James Zhou for the investment. Axel Tuanzebe is missing from the squad, still not match-fit. Leading the attack is Cameron Archer, on loan without an option to buy from Southampton.
Lyon coach's assessment
Lyon's Portuguese head coach, Paulo Fonseca, urged caution about drawing conclusions on Auxerre after just two games, praising Still's qualities and noting that his opponent had changed system between his first two matches, forcing Lyon to prepare for several scenarios. Lyon's own transfer window was not entirely smooth either, with Malick Fofana leaving the club.
Predictions
Ahead of kick-off, data site Sports Mole gave Lyon a 60.85% chance of victory, a draw 22.12%, and an Auxerre win 17.03%, with 1-0 rated the most likely scoreline. RMC Sport pundit Lionel Charbonnier also tipped a Lyon win by at least two goals, predicting an assist from Pavel Sulc and a goal for Openda.
