Lyon's poor form continues with 2-1 loss at Evian

Lyon's losing streak increased to four matches after being defeated 2-1 at Evian in the French league on Saturday.

Striker Kevin Berigaud twice exposed poor defending to put Evian 2-0 up at halftime before midfielder Jordan Ferri pulled a goal back shortly after the break.

Lyon lost 1-0 to Reims last weekend and failed to reach the Champions League's group stage after being defeated twice by Real Sociedad.

Failure to qualify will impact on the club's precarious finances. Lyon needs money and president Jean-Michel Aulas is trying to sell star striker Bafetimbi Gomis before the summer transfer window closes Monday night — — with Premier League club Newcastle eager to sign him — but the striker so far refuses to go and has been banished from the first team.

Lyon has one of the most highly reputed academies in European football and Ferri was one of five homegrown players in the starting lineup with a further six on the bench. It would have been six in the starting team, but midfielder Clement Grenier was absent.

Striker Kevin Berigaud gave Evian the lead in the eighth minute when he ran onto Olivier Sorlin's pass behind the defense and finished with a powerful shot. Cedric Barbosa should have made it 2-0 just minutes later, but missed an easy chance in front of goal.

For his second goal in the 33rd, Beriguad easily found a gap between center halves Bakary Kone and Milan Bisevac before giving goalkeeper Anthony Lopes no chance with a clinical finish.

Ferri's first league goal in professional football came when he picked up a loose ball and drilled a powerful shot into the top corner in the 49th.

Later Saturday, big-spending Paris Saint-Germain was hosting newly-promoted Guingamp.

Also, it is: Bastia vs. Toulouse; Lorient vs. Valenciennes; Reims vs. Nantes; Rennes vs. Lille; and Sochaux vs. Ajaccio.

Leader Marseille takes on second-place Monaco, Saint-Etienne hosts Bordeaux, and Nice faces Montpellier in Sunday's games.

Lyon have the chance to get their season back on track when they visit rock-bottom Evian in Ligue 1 on Saturday.

Les Gones started their league campaign with consecutive victories over Nice and Sochaux before they went down to a 1-0 defeat by Reims last week.

That was followed by their exit from the Champions League in midweek after a 4-0 aggregate defeat to Real Sociedad.

Today captain Maxime Gonalons acknowledged Lyon need to get back to form tomorrow against a side who have taken just one point from three games this season.

Yoann Gourcuff

He told reporters: ``It is a big game on Saturday against Evian, we have to get back into the flow to stop this negative spiral.

``It is not easy because we do not have a lot of recovery time.

``It is never easy to play this game, it is a small derby.

``They have a great desire, they go ahead and do not let go.''

Evian have lost their last two games after drawing with Sochaux in their first game of the season and last week they went down 2-1 to Rennes.

They need to accumulate some points if they are not to repeat the struggles of last year.

Coach Pascal Dupraz said: ``Obviously, we hoped for a better start to the season than this one.

``I still think our efforts deserved a better outcome, except for the first half against Rennes.

``But still, it is not by chance.

``If we are there (bottom), it is for a reason. We must therefore strive to achieve results.''

Of tomorrow's opponents, he added: ``We did not expect to be last when we play against Lyon. This adds to the difficulty of the moment.

``Lyon made a good start to the season, despite the defeat against Reims, where they were clearly unlucky.

``OL have high ambitions in the league, they are going to come to win.

``As for us, we will try to stay very focused and determined to erase the difference between the two teams.''

Carlos Vela sealed Real Sociedad's progression to the group stages of the UEFA Champions League as they eased past Lyon on Wednesday.

The Mexico international struck twice in the second half at Anoeta to give the Liga side a 4-0 aggregate victory and send them into Europe's premier club competition for the first time since 2003-04.

Jagoba Arrasate made two changes to the Sociedad side that won in France last week, as Daniel Estrada and Ion Ansotegi replacing Carlos Martinez and Liassine Cadamuro.

Meanwhile, his opposite number Remi Garde opted to select Samuel Umtiti ahead of Steed Malbranque, while Bakary Kone came in for the suspended Milan Bisevac, who was sent off in the game at the Stade de Gerland.

Lyon began the game brightly and dominated possession in search of an early goal to get themselves back in the tie.

However, they failed to test Claudio Bravo in the Sociedad goal and it was the home side who carved out the first clear-cut chance of the game.

Antoine Griezmann, who lit up the first leg with a sublime scissor-kick, raced through in the eighth minute, but fluffed his lines as his weak attempted chip was easily gathered by Anthony Lopes.

That opening gave Arrasate’s men some impetus though and Griezmann began pulling the strings.

Vela could only fire wide after the Frenchman cut a corner back to him just before the half-hour mark, before Griezmann himself had another effort saved by Lopes.

The former Arsenal man was then involved in the major talking point of the first half as he went down in the area under a challenge from Kone, only for referee Damir Skomina to book him for simulation.

And the 24-year-old could have made amends by opening the scoring a minute later but Lopes palmed his lofted shot wide.

Sociedad picked up where they left off after the break and Haris Seferovic almost grabbed his second goal of the tie on 49 minutes when he collected Vela’s pass, cut inside from the right and rifled a left-footed effort off the inside of the near post with Lopes beaten.

And Seferovic missed a gilt-edged opportunity to wrap up the home side’s victory shortly after as a swift counter-attack ended with Griezmann laying the ball across to him, but the Switzerland international could only side foot wide.

However, Sociedad did not have to wait long for the breathing space they were after as Vela put them three goals to the good on aggregate after 66 minutes.

Griezmann was again the creator as the former Arsenal forward met his inswinging corner with an unmarked header from inside the six-yard box.

And Vela saved his best for last, as he grabbed his second of the night with a brilliant solo effort in injury time that involved him beating two defenders before coolly lifting the ball over Lopes.

GOALS

C. Vela 67' 

(assist by A. Griezmann) 

C. Vela 90'+1