Speaking after Olympique Lyonnais’ 2-1 defeat at home against Clermont Foot, owner John Textor brushed off the notion of relegation to Ligue 2.
After nine matches, Lyon are bottom of Ligue 1. Fabio Grosso’s men are still winless after their latest defeat to Clermont Foot, who went into matchday nine bottom of the table. Les Gones have just three points and are already five points adrift of FC Metz, who currently occupy the relegation playoff spot.
The club have already changed manager this season with Grosso replacing Laurent Blanc, however, there has not been a new-manager bounce and results have not improved. Despite the worrying signs at Lyon, Textor has said that he is not worried about a potential relegation and has described the conversation around the topic as fear-mongering.
“There is a lot of negativity around this club. It comes from politicians locally, it comes from former management, it comes from bureaucrats. It’s not coming from the fans […] we’re obviously very disappointed,” began Textor, who only purchased the club back in 2022.
Asked by a journalist whether a relegation to Ligue 2 was a possibility, Textor responded, “I know you have to ask the question, but it’s a comical question. This team is not at risk of relegation. Teams that get relegated in any country, in any league do not play like we played tonight. You don’t see that kind of quality in teams that go down. We don’t look down the table, we look up the table.”
The American owner continued, “We risk having a very mediocre season. That bothers the hell out of us. But whoever is talking about relegation is just stoking fear and creating stories. It’s good fodder for conversation, but it’s a bit of a joke. I don’t take it seriously […] it’s nonsense. I’m not [worried about relegation]. That team is too good. Teams that play that well don’t go down. Nobody in that dressing room is worried, our staff aren’t worried, I’m not worried. Anyone that really pays attention to this game, they aren’t worried. It’s just talk.”
Textor’s ownership of Lyon has been mired by issues on and off the pitch. Les Gones’ summer transfer window was disrupted by France’s financial watchdog, the DNCG, due to the financial issues at the club.
GFFN | Luke Entwistle
