Lyon Sign EDERSON and BOUMSONG (plus other transfer news)

Inara - "I think the management knew that going into the season. Given the relaxed way they are accepting Lyon’s rather shoddy record this year, it’s obvious the club is more concerned with building a squad, making players fit together, changing how they play the game"
I tend to agree with the building squad part. It is incredible to see the amount of transfers Lyon has done during this winter mercato. More than I have ever seen them do.

Anyway, it is interesting to hear your different opinions.

I am very optimistic for the future Inara, make no mistake about that. ;)

Shazback -
"Casillas vs Coupet
Ramos-Pepe-Cannavaro-Heinze vs Reveillère-Squillaci-Cris-Grosso
Guti-Gago-Sneijder vs Juninho-Toulalan-Källström
Robinho-Van Nistelrooy-Robben vs Govou-Benzema-Ben Arfa"
The difference between you and me is that in this case I only see 1 line where Lyon is not as good than madrid : defense. For me, All the other lines are as good, and I would also say that the midfield may even be stronger than the one of Madrid (that's just personal opinion).

You are right, Lyon has never beaten a big gun in a crucial match. But clubs like Chelsea haven't really done so either. And may I remind you that Arsenal hadn't gone past the 1/4 finals of the champions league before the year they reached the final.

As for Diarra, Essien and Edmilson, I gave their names because they were starters in their "big team" as you said. Diarra of course didn't settle in as well as everyone thought, but noone will deny he is one of the best out there. As for Edmilson, he was a regular in the Barca midfield for a few years, and it is only in the past years he has been changed. But using the argument he is not playing now to say he is not good is not valid IMO. Barca just renewed their squad with other players. But Edmilson did the trick for a few years.

Anyway, I hope you understand that I am a Lyon supporter, and that even at the times of Giuly and Maurice or even N'gotty for me Lyon played the best football in Europe.

Rougebleu : Lyon has one player that every club and their sister wants right now. Benzema. Sadly, that's about it. Coupet will still be attractive for one or two seasons, but he's past his best. Defensively, nobody's interesting. Midfield? Well, Ben Arfa and Toulalan are the most interesting. But even there, Ben Arfa isn't yet seasoned enough and hasn't proved himself on the CL level (a bit like Nani), so whilst he's a talent, he's not exceptional. Toulalan is a solid defensive midfielder, but there are a lot of them around now, from Gago and Diarra at Real to Gattuso at AC Milan... And he's not showing enough ability to build the play going forwards for the moment.

You say that what Lyon lack is "prestige"... But how do Lyon want to gain any when they sign B-listed players like Anderson and Boumsong, or even interesting, but not star players like Delgado or Keita? Lyon have won 6 L1 on the run. If that's not enough "trophy", then how will the 7th change anything? I don't buy into this. Marseille in the early 1990s was able to sign international stars like Waddle, and they hadn't done even half of what Lyon has done (prior to winning the CL in 1993)... So what does Lyon need? I honestly can't see where Lyon lacks in "prestige" compared with Roma, Arsenal, Tottenham or Atletico...

Inter's money comes from Mr Moratti... Their own Oil Tycoon. Milan might be old, but Pato, Kaka, Gilardinho, Bonera, Gourcuff and Digao are ready to help the overhaul. Roma still have on their books Mexes (arguably better alone than all of Lyon's back line), Vucinic, Mancini, Pizarro, Taddei, De Rossi... All are at least on par with Lyon's best XI. Munich have only lost once in the Bundesliga... Against 5 times for Lyon. Their attack is weak for the moment, but it could become just as impressive at the start of the season. I don't think much of Juventus or Liverpool, so I'll let them be.

As for "beating" top clubs... Roma knocked Lyon out last season, AC Milan beat Lyon the previous season, PSV the season before that, Porto the season before that, Denizlispor the season before... In fact, which "big" clubs have Lyon beat? Real twice in the group stages (Real went through both times), Bayern once in the group stages (Bayern went through), Inter once in the group stages (Inter went through, Lyon went to UEFA)... And that's it. Since 2001. 4 wins. None were decisive, sadly.

Lyon are building up. I just want to remind us all of this, because I must admit I chuckle inside when I read "the quality of our squad is as good as the big european clubs"...

Ronan : Unless I'm mistaken, Gudjohnsen has always played as a "deep" attacker, behind an out-and-out striker. When need has been, he's often dropped to the wings or to a lower midfield position. So I think he'd be able to change to defence. Not very well, but his positioning is good, his movement is alright, and he's an excellent header of the ball... So he could probably fill in. Not become a great defender, but fill in. Like Bodmer...

pride of lyon : When I look at Abidal, Malouda, Essien, Diarra and Edmilson, I see good defensive-minded players, with a big physical aspect to their playing style. Malouda is now on the bench at Chelsea. Cole has come back from injury, and Grant seems only too happy to have a proper solution to his attacking problems. Abidal hasn't got all the culés behind him yet, and his lapses in concentration as well as his still far too average crossing aren't helping him much. His defensive qualities on the other hand remain. Both of these were recognised as part of the best left sides in the world before they were sold... Whilst Abidal has more or less kept true to his reputation, Malouda hasn't... He's one of the dissapointments of Chelsea's squad so far. Essien, I admit I didn't recon he was as good as he proved to be with Chelsea. But Diarra and Edmilson have not yet managed to become constant first picks in their respective clubs... Diarra has found Gago, Guti, Sneijder and Robben to be just too much (I'm not counting Robinho's left-wing antics last season, nor Drenthe's this season). Edmilson hasn't been helped by his injuries, but Deco-Iniesta-Xavi-Ronaldinho-Eto'o-Motta/Messi has kept him to a secondary role, increased now by Dos Santos, Gudjohnsen, Bojan and Touré... So out of the five you spoke of, how many are "stars" in their side? I'd say two. Abidal and Essien. And Abidal is more of a falling star than a rising one. So nope, they're not "better" players, nor "worse" players. They're just pretty much what Lyon's starting XI is in my eyes : a few true stars and a lot of good but not exceptional players.

Best starting XIs? Without injury?

Casillas vs Coupet
Ramos-Pepe-Cannavaro-Heinze vs Reveillère-Squillaci-Cris-Grosso
Guti-Gago-Sneijder vs Juninho-Toulalan-Källström
Robinho-Van Nistelrooy-Robben vs Govou-Benzema-Ben Arfa

I only see one line where Lyon are on level : Attack. And that's with Lyon's preferred formation, not Real's. You can find them to be equal, I just don't. And so far, results back that up.

Sure, Lyon doesn't have anything to blush of. Except their defence. And their lack of depth. It's because of these two reasons that many people (myself included) still consider Lyon to be a "2nd-rate" european side (2nd-rate in chances of winning the CL that is...), when Lyon have won more trophies this century than ANY OTHER EUROPEAN CLUB. Lyon are the most successful club in Europe at the moment, and the French league is only a few little points behind the Italian league in the UEFA Ranking. So why does the team that breezes through the L1 find it so hard to win against top league european opponents when it's important? It's nice to beat Real in the group stages, but I'm sure you'd swap it any day for not having conceded those two goals against AC Milan... And that's the point. You don't write club history on group stages. Not in Europe. You write them in the latter stages and in the domestic league.

Sahzback, well, actually rougebleu answered for me.
When you look at it, Benzema, Ben Arfa, Kallstrom, Toulalan... (just to give those names). All the big guns want to buy these players for a huge amount of money. the truth is that if those players were leaving you would say that they are better players just because they play for Real or Barca.
Look at the previous years : Abidal, Malouda, Essien, Diarra, Edmilson. All those players played for us and now that they play in a bigger club, they just get a world wide recognition. I don't think it means that they are better players.

You are right on one point though, we don't have as big a depth in the squad as they have. But do we really want the depth in squad? it is usually more problems than benefit. Most of us already think we have too much of a depth in midfield...
If you take the best starting 11 possible of all the big teams in Europe (and forget about the injuries), IMO Lyon's best starting 11 is as good as any of them.

I see now that Lyon is not a big club yet, because when we sell players they suddenly become great players, but in people's mind, when we sign players, they are always crap.

I know it may sound unrealistic and arrogant. But compared to other clubs, apart from history, Lyon has nothing to blush of.

Ronan, Gudjohnsen has played in central midfield as of late, linking defense to attack. He did not mean a defender, but lower on the pitch then one would imagine.

Shazback, wot are u talking about gudjohnsen how the hell cud he play as a defender wen he is a natural striker ?

Shazback, Lyon might not have the depth of players those teams have, but we are building it. Up front we have players all those teams WANT. Our midfield: Toulalan, Kallstrom, bodmer, juni, ederson, santos, etc. is still a force to be reckoned with. Next season they can only get better, with the exception of juni, who is getting old sadly. Our defense is the only thing subpar in my opinion, but injuries and transfers can do that. Real and Barca both have many more years of titles and trophies, Chelsea have so much money they can buy someone's soul, Arsenal have a huge amount of prestige in Europe(through trophies or amazing players) and one of the best managers in the world, same with MU, Inter has a huge debt because of their team (last time I checked it was something like over half the entire money owed in the italian league) but maybe nike will pay it off... Milan is getting old with the exception of a few players, Roma are about par with us I think, maybe a bit better up front with totti, Bayern can't seem to score against bottom of the league teams even with one the strongest attacks in football, Juventus is a joke now, and Liverpool can't seem to get the team chemistry together this season. All of these we don't have, the good and bad. I really think the only thing keeping us down is other teams heavily built reputations, Perrin (I agree fully with you there. Which we are building up every season by beating them (or in barca's case drawing even :P), without caring about their top of the world first teams.

Pride of Lyon : I don't think Lyon are even close to the quality that other "top" european sides have, be it in the starting XI or on the bench. Take Barcelona or Real Madrid, who can play with a lone striker up front (Eto'o or RVN) who is probably better than Benzema (he's good, but those guys are killer). Or can play with two strikers up front (+Henry or +Raul)... Wingers? They're stacked. From Messi and Ronaldinho, Robben and Robinho, but also Dos Santos, Sneijder, Iniesta or Drenthe... In central midfield, they've got enough depth to make a great squad even with two internationals injured : without Deco and Yaya Touré, Barcelona field Gudjohnsen/Dos Santos/Edmilson or change formation to add Bojan/Henry, or put Marquez in midfield... And they've still got Ronaldinho, Messi, Iniesta, Xabi and Eto'o on the pitch! Without Gago and Diarra, Real just field a four-mad midfield made of Sneijder, Baptista, Robben, Guti. Or Robinho, Drenthe, Ramos, Higuain or Saviola can play in a more midfield position in a different playing system. Lyon's defence has been in shambles this season because of two injuries to central defenders. If Marquez and Sylvinho are injured, then Barça still have Milito, Puyol, Zambrotta, Thuram, Abidal and Oleguer as "natural" defenders, and Edmilson, Touré and perhaps Gudjohnsen could adapt... Same for Real. Pepe and Marcelo injured? you've still got Salgado, Ramos, Cannavaro, Metzelder, Drenthe and Heinze. And Diarra or Gago could fill in if need is.

So that's every line except the goalkeeper (not "really" a line, but Casillas and Valdes aren't too bad) where Barça/Real have more quality and more depth. Lyon's squad is a lot better than other french clubs, but is still a long shot away from the squads of the biggest teams in the world (hence even without a proper defence Lyon is top of the league whilst barely scraping through in the CL).

Lyon seem to be looking to become more adaptable, and to introduce the 4-4-2 as an alternative to their current playing style. But I don't think Perrin is the man to do it. He's not a very good manager in my opinion (certainly not good enough for Lyon), whilst to change tactics, you need someone with a clear idea on where he's going and how he's going to get there...

Oh, and if you're thinking it's "just" Real and Barça, look at Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester United, Inter Milan, AC Milan, Roma, or even (more arguably) at Bayern Munich, Juventus or Liverpool...

I actually think that it is hard to change from 4-3-3 into another formation. I think that all the Lyon staff would love to be adaptable. But it needs time to change, and when you need results on the short term, you have no opportunity to change tactics without losing a few games and feeling a lot of heat behind your collar.
We will have to wait for next season to see another tactic I think.

I also think like a lot of people here that 4-3-3 is restraining Lyon's progress. Of course we are winning, but to be honest, the quality of our squad is as good as the big european clubs if you don't look too closely at the defense.
I am all for a 4-4-2. I also think people tend to think of Govou Keita Ben Arfa as pure wingers while they could definitely play in a more central position as long as it is high up the pitch (they could even take the wing from time to time).

As for Delgado, I don't see Lyon getting rid of him in the summer as they spent a lot of money to bring him in now.

And no, I do not play football manager, I play football.

One, I still have a feeling lyon are going for the 442 again, or maybe something more complex that perrin has up his sleeve to accommodate Ederson, Keita and Bodmer (Imagine both Ederson and Juni on the pitch, midfield nightmare)...something like lille, a more defensive 4-5-1 or 5-2-1-2, or a 4411 seeing as how they aren't going for any DM. We have the players for all those formations. Switching formations half way through a game can really hurt an opposition...and since everyone expects 433 starting the formation differently can really dent any strategies made.

I think Lyon shot themselves in the foot by picking up Bodmer and Keita even though they are my favorite players on the team. WHERE DO THEY PLACE THEM?!

fred is an obvious canidate to be sold as is Anderson while fabio santos and delgado are canidate for loans. I don't worry about non-eu slots teams figure it out, and garay won't be coming, he will go to Madrid next season. Jo I like your lineup and use of youthplayers, I think we underestimate their potential.

Indeed, Guignol. My mistake... But then why did Aulas ask for a derogation to sign Anderson when Cris injured himself? Because there were only 3 non-EU players on rooster then... Cris, Fred, Fabio Santos... So why did Lyon need a derogation to bring Anderson in? Anyway, it only marginally changes the problem, Lyon will have to sell one non-EU player next summer if Cris gets a Portuguese passport, and two if he doesn't. I wonder what that means... Anderson can probably get his luggage ready, but he might not be the only one.

Christs sake wot about the striker,LB and DM ?

juninho is NOT a non EU player, he's had a french passport over a year now. i think the 4 non EU players will be ederson, fred, fabio santos... and someone else, maybe not even someone on the club right now, someone who can play CB/LB. that depends on how delgado comes along, but frankly i think he'll be third at his position when the dust settles.

I'm still trying to figure out how Lyon are going to stay down to 4 on-EU players when their derogation runs out in July...

So far, Juninho, Cris, Delgado, Anderson, and Fred are non-EU players on Lyon's rooster. However, to register players for competition next season, they can only have 4 non-EU players... Cris will get a portuguese passport, hopefully, but Ederson will come, and Fabio Santos will come back from loan... So that's 6 players for 4 positions. I doubt Delgado, Ederson or Juninho will be left out since they're recent buys or very important players. So who'll leave? Anderson is a strong possibility, but who of Fabio Santos and Fred? My money's on Fabio Santos.

Anyway, Lyon will have to sell two non-EU players if Cris gets a portuguese passport, and three if he doesn't. I wonder how they work it out. And if they bring Garay in, then it'll be even harder to solve the conundrum... Fred, Fabio Santos, Anderson to leave, and perhaps another player if Cris doesn't get his passport in time to register for the first games of the season (early august)...?

You're right Pride of Lyon.
It would be FANTASTIC for me to see Lyon winning again and again next year with an offensive line EXCLUSIVELY "made in Lyon".
I cannot find any club in Europe with this particularity. Tell me if I'm wrong.
It's a matter of pride.

In football, pride is as important as results.

"He´s also the first brazilian we´ve recruited who hasn´t come straight from Brazil"
I know we speak the same language, and that the guy hasn´t exactly excelled in your defense (Thanks for the buy, by the way), but last time I checked Anderson played in Benficas´ defense before moving to Lyon. I think that counts as Europe, don´t you?

what's exciting is that OL has been able to react to what was their biggest exodus in recent years, which had the nattering nabobs of negativism crowing the end of an era, and form what angel marcos called potentially the strongest OL ever even before this mercato, and further strengthen even that, and done with a combination of homegrown youth players and signings both modest and ambitious.

the surfeit of extracommunity players sets the tone: right now there are too many good players for next season, prime (but for from sole) example on the right wing where govou, keita and delgado are going to be fighting for 2 spots on the roster and 1 in the "équipe type". after a few seasons of maximum stability, OL from now until next august will be a crucible where all this material will be melted down and forged into the next generation of "top gones"

the only player with no one breathing down his deck (even counting benzema and juni!) is grosso, and you can bet your bottom dollar that will change at latest this june.

I like your dream team Jo.

Still, I can't see us keep all those midfielders. Either Bodmer or Kallstrom will leave. Also we can see you are a true Lyonnais; you want to use the ﾞhomemadeﾞ players in priority.

And of course more substitutes with Beynié, Paillot, Charvet... if we need them because of injuries, etc... :)

I'm sooo happy right now.
Ederson is THE guy we needed for Lyon's future.

Here is the line up I dream about, for next year :

---------------Coupet------------------
Clerc - Squillaci - Cris - Someone ELSE
--------------Toulalan-----------------
--------Ederson - Fabios Santos--------
----Govou ---- Benzema ---- Ben Arfa---

And for Substitutes :
Hugo Loris
Reveillere, Boumsong, Muller, Someone ELSE
Juninho, Romaric, Bodmer, Kallstrom
Keita, Fred, Delgado, Mounier

We probably can go in semi finals or even in final of the champion's league with this team, next year.

It is funny to see how Lyon is kind of following Arsenal's pattern.
They are using some young players, and import some players from another country (Brazil in our case). They are also building their new stadium (like the Emirates).

The only difference being Lyon also buying players in the French Ligue 1. Which is not really the case with Arsenal.

Inara : " Don’t you just want to take him home and feed him chicken soup? " 0.o .....not really lol

plus your point about the 7 south americans......nothing wrong with having us around lol

He usually plays dead center behind the strikers so he will have some adapting to do if he is to switch to juninho's left sided midfield role. Also, I expect juninho to stay pride, he wont start every game though, he know he may be tutoring Ederson.

What position(s) does Ederson play/which side?

I am very happy with those two signings.
The quote I loved the most in your summary is : "I’ve wanted him at Lyon for so long that Ederson’s arrival almost feels like a personal victory." Actually I felt the same thing when we signed players like Kallstrom, Bodmer and Keita.
We can say whatever we want about Lyon's recruitment, they always take a few players we have wished for.

On the other hand, I do hope Santos comes back from Brazil. He is a fighter and has a very good team spirit as well. We need our Gattuso, and he is just that. I would like him to come back.

Ederson will do great at Lyon. Will be hard to find a starting 11 next year...

I am actually more worried of Juninho leaving. Ederson is there to take his place. Lyon always sign player to replace before letting their players go... Does it mean Juninho will leave this summer?

So I'm guessing the fact that, in your example picture, his eyes aren't looking in the same direction doesn't matter? :)

Also, and this is equally important, Boumsong has such pretty eyes.

This is why I love blogs written by women. They tell us the things that really matter. ;-)

Good for Mounier, he needs some playing time. I also advise Remy to go out on loan to, because even though Keita will be gone for the max amount of time, he will play more with Lorient or Nice, and if we send him to Lille we may be able to negotiate Mirallas! Anyways, welcome Ederson, glad to have you aboard, still waiting on a defensive midfielder though.