Welcome back to Ligue 1 McDonald's, FC Lorient!

"We know that it's not enough to say we're going to bounce back, even though I note that this year, two of the clubs that were relegated have immediately returned (Angers and Auxerre). We're going to take inspiration from that," promised president Loïc Féry on the evening of a hugely frustrating direct relegation to Ligue 2 BKT on 19th May 2024.

A year after being relegated to France's second division by the tightest of margins, FC Lorient have bounced back at the first time of asking and have tonight sealed promotion back to Ligue 1 McDonald's. 

Les Merlus will celebrate their 100-year anniversary as a club among the elite after a 4-0 win over already relegated SM Caen. Mohamed Bamba opened the scoring for the hosts, before Eli Junior Kroupi scored his 20th goal of the season, with Sambou Soumano scoring a late brace. 

The Breton side's promotion was confirmed following FC Metz's loss to Pau (2-1) which finished during Lorient's added-time, sparking celebrations on the touchline even before the final whistle had been blown.

Coach Olivier Pantaloni left his long-term job at Ajaccio in a bid to get Les Merlus back to Ligue 1 this season, and has trimmed the squad down to an eclectic mix of youthful talent and older heads.

The 58-year-old Corsican, who had achieved the feat of leading AC Ajaccio to the top flight twice (2010-2011 and 2021-2022), this time took on the status of ‘favourite’ for promotion, with a large squad, a far cry from his seasons at Ajaccio.

Only Tiémoué Bakayoko and Benjamin Mendy left the club, while Julien Ponceau, Laurent Abergel, Montassar Talbi and Yvon Mvogo have stayed, and despite the pressure, the coach's human qualities have worked wonders.

Eli Junior Kroupi the key man

Les Merlus have won 21 of their 32 Ligue 2 games this season to secure promotion back to Ligue 1 in just one season. Young prospect and Bournemouth-bound Eli Junior Kroupi (18) has been a key part of this success, scoring 20 goals in 28 matches to lead the current goal-scoring rankings in the French second division. 

Next up Lorient face a symbolic trip to Ajaccio and a home game against Martigues to look forward to, hoping to celebrate the Ligue 2 BKT title in front of its home crowd on Saturday 10 May.

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