Crisis? What Crisis?

By: Inara | October 6th, 2007

There have been several rather fatalistic comments made by OL players in the past few days (”Lyon are the poorest team in the Champions League,” “This is the worst night of my professional career,” “Third place is a realistic target,” “One of Lyon’s most awful nights as French champions,” etc), and though Lyon supremo Jean-Michel Aulas denied that there was a “crisis with a capital C,” even he had to struggle for the optimism he usually brandies like an AK-47.

Aulas has been struggling to find footing in Lyon’s run of poor performances.

In a surprisingly frank interview on the OL website, he made a point of being as honest and as clear as possible with the supporters without being too negative. But refreshingly, he did say that there would be changes. What sort of changes remain unclear however.

Excerpts:

This defeat raised many questions….I asked Alain Perrin to explain his choices to better understand what had happened…I said that it was necessary to put the players where they are accustomed to be playing, and that in this kind of match, it is also important to base things more on the foundation and strong points rather than on innovations. I want to point out that this match against Rangers wasn’t taken lightly.”

“Non-qualification for the knockout rounds would be a disappointment, but it would not jeopardize the financial results of the club…The UEFA Cup? It is necessary to be realistic. It is obvious. Right now, we’re more likely to finish 3rd, even 4th. We should not underestimate the UEFA Cup.”

“I maintain my confidence with [the recruitment] made and with those who made the decisions….We invested 40M euros. I condemn the criticisms of Grosso and Keita. It is not the fault of Kader if we paid 17M for him! These players will be worth their value. I point out that when Sonny and Juni arrived, it took time for them to adjust. It is very premature to draw the conclusions I hear and I read.”

“I maintain my confidence in Alain Perrin. If we want him to achieve more, it is necessary that he feels the confidence of his president. “

Yes, there were difficulties between Alain Perrin and the staff. We spoke about it. I think that it’s finished now. It’s my responsibility to say: if we win, we win together…and if we lose, we lose to together as well. I will say it myself: nobody will leave with the objectives are not achieved.

The objectives are to qualify for the Champions League and then to try going deeper into the competition. At the moment, Lyon are in a bad position. On the other hand, in our domestic championship, we arrived at the level corresponding to our expectations…We need the players and the staff at 100, even 120% of their potential.”

[on whether he regrets making certain decisions] “Yes, without going into details. As a president, it is necessary to know how to listen and to delegate.”

“I always have the hope of a qualification for to the knockout rounds, even if it is difficult. In the meantime, I make a point of congratulating the Marseillais for their victory in Liverpool. It is very good for French football.I am pleased with their victory.”