The championship changed its formula, introducing rugby-style playoffs to conclude the season. The historic president of Olympique Lyonnais, Jean-Michel Aulas, left his place to the American Michele Kang. But there is one truth that has not changed one bit: the Lyonnaises are the leaders of French women’s football. This Friday evening, the experience and errors of PSG offer them a 17th title of French champions in eighteen seasons. Galactic!
In this first final in the modern history of D1 Arkema (the last took place in 1992), there was almost no suspense. The start of the Parisiennes, almost perfect, allowed us to glimpse the possibility of a nice tactical move from Jocelyn Prêcheur and his players, in an evolving 4-3-3 which surprised OL. But after a quarter of an hour of play, PSG’s problems awoke.
In four minutes, goalkeeper Katarzyna Kiedrzynek was guilty of an error then a huge blunder. Two gifts too many for Delphine Cascarino (18th), precise with the left foot on the closed side, and Kadidiatou Diani, alone six meters away (22nd). The looks of Jocelyn Prêcheur and his staff say everything about the situation: PSG has already missed its chance. A similar scenario to the semi-final against Paris FC last Saturday. But this time the adversity is completely different.
Does the fault only belong to the Polish woman? An entire season without a confident starting goalkeeper, for both men and women, has rarely proven itself. It is impossible to say that Constance Picaud would have done better but a choice will be made for the staff in the coming months. This early 2-0 brings all the more regret as PSG had the weapons to annoy OL, notably thanks to the speed and left foot of Tabitha Chawinga.
And now the Champions League for the Lyonnaises
The Malawian striker created the best opportunities (4th, 35th, 54th, 73rd). On the last, the best player of the season finally offers the long-awaited start to PSG, by recovering her own basketball-style rebound, to deceive Christiane Endler (74th). With possession largely in its favor in the second period, Paris showed that it knew the recipe. But some essential ingredients were missing to give real thrills to the 16,000 spectators at Groupama Stadium.
Only a few tensions linked to clashes between French internationals (Diani, Cascarino, Renard, Majri, Karchaoui, etc.) stirred up the spirits. All under the eyes of coach Hervé Renard, who is getting closer to the announcement of the Olympic list. But before the Blues try to win it in Paris, on August 10, the gold belongs to Lyon and its undisputed queens. The results of the 2023-2024 confrontations are beyond any debate: 5 victories for OL against PSG and one draw.
Revolted by the introduction of the playoffs, deemed unfair, the Lyonnaises showed the FFF that they would not give up their crown. In a week, against Barça, they will also be able to dream of a 9th Champions League.
