Match Reports
Lyon's Bench Sparks Comeback Win Over Le Havre
Early in the first half, Lyon pushed forward and created space thanks to Ernest Nuamah's vision. Then Rayan Cherki picked out Nicolás Tagliafico, who went down in the box after contact with Étienne Youté.
The Le Havre defender appeared to swipe at the Argentine fullback, leading to VAR reviewing the play for a potential penalty.
After the review, OL received a penalty with Alexandre Lacazette taking the shot. The Lyon No. 10 stayed calm and slotted it into the bottom left corner past Mathieu Gorgelin to give the home side a one-goal advantage in the 22nd minute.
Nine minutes later, Le Havre equalized with a penalty of their own. Yassine Kechta made the difference, racing down the corner line. After Lucas Perri saved the shot, the ball returned to Kechta, and Nuamah fouled in the box, earning the penalty.
Abdoulaye Touré leveled the score with his own penalty, a Panenka down the middle, while Perri had gone to the right. Le Havre would score a second goal right before halftime to take a 2-1 lead into halftime.
Le Havre disrupted Lyon's defense as Corentin Tolisso misplaced a pass, and Issa Soumaré pounced on the opportunity. Josué Casimir made a perfect run down the middle, leaving the Lyon defenders flat-footed. The right winger tore through the defensive line and finished neatly into the far corner after a brilliant touch.
The away side held their lead for most of the second half then in the 78th minute, OL mounted their comeback. Malick Fofana, who came on in the 71st minute, set the left side on fire after a brilliant assist from Georges Mikautadze.
Fofana breezed past the entire defense and even the goalkeeper with a sublime dribble. The Belgian had nothing left to do but finish into the empty net.
Less than five minutes later, Mikautadze, who came off the bench in the 77th minute, gave OL the lead. From the corner, the Lyon attacker was left unmarked at the far post due to a mix-up in
Le Havre's defense and the former FC Metz player struck it powerfully into the top corner. OL sealed the win with an insurance goal in stoppage time, as Thiago Almada netted his first Ligue 1 McDonald's goal and the team’s third of the second half.
After OL's 4-2 win over Le Havre, Mikautadze spoke to DAZN and shared his thoughts on the positive result.
"My mindset when I come on? We don’t have much time; we’re trailing. We have to give everything; we needed to win this afternoon to catch up third place, which means Champions League. The substitutes made a difference, as they have been doing for several weeks.
"As a No. 9, that’s my preferred position. I also like making the final pass, pleasing my teammates. I’m a generous person, I try to give my best every time I have the opportunity."
The Stat: 10
After his goal against Le Havre, Fofana became the first player to score 10 goals in a season for OL in official competitions before turning 20, a feat last achieved by Maxwel Cornet in 2015-16 (12 goals).
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