Lyon End Up Scalping Bordeaux, Benzema Is Irresistible

By: Inara | October 7th, 2007

Karim Benzema scored his tenth league goal of the season in Lyon’s 3-0 defeat of title contenders Bordeaux. And guess who provided the assist? Hatem Ben Arfa. It should also be noted that the referee wrongfully disallowed another Benzema goal though it was clearly over the line. Had that counted, Benzema would be up to 11, which is three goals shy of Pauleta’s tally from last year. Pauleta, by the way, was L1’s top scorer last season.

I don’t care that scoring for Lyon isn’t the same as scoring for Juventus. It’s obvious that we in France are witnessing something special every time Benzema is on the pitch. And though he’s under contract until 2012, I cry for the day when Real Madrid show up with a bid that Aulas won’t be able to refuse.

Lyon’s match away to Bordeaux this afternoon was supposed to be a lot more difficult than it turned out to be. But for some reason, Laurent Blanc’s men didn’t show up until the second half, when they finally started putting Lyon under pressure, increasing their intensity in the last ten minutes – but by then it was too late. Lyon’s other two goals were scored by Anderson and Kim Kallstrom, though Jussie managed to net one for Bordeaux.

So Lyon won, and in their gold kits they already looked like this season’s champions. Which just goes to show you how weird Ligue 1 is. Lyon are sitting atop the table but have yet to collect a single point in the Champions League, whereas Marseille are one spot from the bottom and yet are the only team in their CL group (which includes Liverpool and Porto) with the full six points. Bipolar disorder, anyone?

The Goals:

Besides Benzema showing us once again how amazing he is, the other great piece of news was Fabio Santos, who was unquestionably man of the match. A solid, steady presence in the midfield, he ensured that Lyon didn’t miss Jeremy Toulalan at all. And considering that I’m a big fan of “La Toule,” that’s hefty praise from me indeed.

Hatem Ben Arfa put in another good match, though in the second half he faded slightly. He was fast and tricky – all he needs now is to bulk up so that he can muscle past the few defenders he can’t avoid. In fact, the entire squad looked good out there, which makes me wonder how the hell Lyon went from looking shitty against Rangers to looking almost like the team they were supposed to be within a four day span.

Maybe Alain Perrin is the bipolar one.

And speaking of deep, psychological problems, I noticed that once again, when Juninho was subbed off, he gave the captain’s armband to Kallstrom – despite the fact that Sydney Govou, Lyon’s most senior player and former captain, was still on the pitch. Hmm.

Anyway, that’s it for now. I’m short on time and won’t be able to do a full match analysis – so please dear readers, fill in for me!