“Hugo is Perfect,” Secret Stealing Italians, and the End of Spa Week

By: Inara | May 2nd, 2008

Be still my heart.

Gregory Coupet has designated Nice’s Hugo Lloris as his perfect successor. Geez, what more proof does Hugo need of my Lyon’s love for him? According to the media, Lloris would not be opposed to a move to Lyon - but not as Coupet’s backup. Nice would like to keep Lloris for an additional year, on loan. So basically, Lloris’s transfer hinges on Coupet.

As to that, Coupet said that things were 50/50 right now, that he had equal chances of staying as he did of going. While Coupet’s tempted to embark on one last adventure, he loves Lyon and wouldn’t mind ending his career here. Much of it depends on who the manager will be next year, the presence of Joel Bats as goalkeeping coach, and who the #2 goalkeeper will be.

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Earlier this week, a whole bevy of Italians crossed the Alps and and descended on Tola Volage, Lyon’s training center. The delegation, sent by the Italian Football Federation, are at Lyon in order to learn about the club’s youth policy and formation. The group consists of both administrators and coaches of Coverciano, the Italian counterpart to Clairefontaine. So over the next several days, Ferrari and his friends will be meeting with Lyon’s Academy director, George Prost, as well as with the various youth coaches, including one Patrick Paillot, Sandy’s dad.

Franco Ferrari, the director of the Italian Football Federation Research Center, explained the reason for his visit.

“We are very interested in the work done in Lyon. This isn’t a random visit because being in Italy, we are close enough to assess the work being done in France and particularly in Lyon. They don’t produce so many high level players by chance. So we’re here to understand their model and be inspired by the Lyon method…We’re world champions, but that doesn’t mean anything if we can’t improve.”

What’s interesting to me is not their visit but the fact that they’re at Lyon of all places. OL has a great academy, but the best in France is Clairefontaine, one of the world’s premier football academies. But I guess it wouldn’t do for France to give away their most guarded secrets, and the doors to Clairefontaine don’t open for just anyone, and especially not for any Italians. Imagine what Raymond Domenech would have to say about that.

Maybe they’re also here to take back Fabio Grosso. Too bad he’s at the spa this week.

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And speaking of the spa…Lyon’s week at Evian is drawing to a close. For those of you not in the know, Lyon’s senior team packed their bags and headed off for some peace and quiet. Alain Perrin wanted his players away from the constant media pressure that has created a bad working environment at Lyon. The club chose the spa resort as Evian (yes, the source of the famous mineral water), where the players have spent this past week relaxing.

Evian…home of spring water and spiritual recuperation.

While they still have had practices, it’s been more lighthearted, and they’ve all been receiving massages, mud bathes, and whatever else they do at the spa to increase a sense of well-being. Due to all the free time (they’re away from their families), the players have been bonding over movies, golf, tennis, video games, and have been going out to restaurants (but no clubs!) together. It’s hoped that the tension among the players will have dissipated somewhat.

And if we’re really lucky, Karim Benzema and Hatem Ben Arfa are back to being semi-friends and have returned to being playstation partners. That would solve so many problems right there.