‘The Paris Team Is Almost as Strong as the Lyon Team’ – Former Lyon Manager Breaksdown PSG Féminine’s Victory

Paris Saint-Germain's head coach Olivier Echouafni (L) speaks to his players during the French Women's D1 football match between Paris Saint-Germain and Lyon at the Parc des Princes stadium in Paris on November 20, 2020. (Photo by FRANCK FIFE / AFP) (Photo by FRANCK FIFE/AFP via Getty Images)

The Paris Saint-Germain Féminine defeated Olympique Lyonnais 1-0 at the Parc des Princes with Marie-Antoinette Katoto scoring the match’s lone goal. The victory by Les Parisiennes ended an 80-match unbeaten streak of Lyon’s in Division 1 Féminine that stretched nearly four-years.

Lyon’s loss was only their sixth since 2006 in Division 1 Féminine, with three coming at the hands in 2014, 2016, and now 2020. Former Lyon manager Reynald Pedros spoke with Canal Plus (via Canal Supporters) to get his insight on the match. 

Pedros highlighted the capital club’s excellent game in the first half and the courage they showed in the second part. They generated pressure until obtaining the victory and assured that Lyon was not at their opponent’s level.

“As PSG played against the Lyonnaises, we see very little. Even in the European Cup, we have teams that are afraid to give up. There is a psychological advantage for OL. The Paris team is almost as strong as the Lyon team. They imposed a lot of duels on the Lyonnaises, they defended by advancing, and that disrupted OL. They took that first goal. They lost confidence. They never got back into the game,” Pedros said.

“Lyon was not at the level also because of the pressing of PSG, and these duels won. I want to say that PSG won the first period through play and the second through courage. I saw a very, very good team from Paris, especially in the first half. Technically, in possession, there is a lot of progress. Few bullet losses, they made Lyon run, and they hate it! And then they were effective. They had been missing for a few years. And that changes everything.”

It will be interesting to see whether or not PSG can translate this victory to winning trophies, whether domestically or in Europe. Lyon won’t be going anywhere, so the capital club will need to make wins over their rival a recurring theme and not a one-off occurrence. 

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Tags Olympique Lyonnais PSG Féminine
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