Olympique Lyonnais v Lille Match Report, 21/01/2020, Coupe de la Ligue

Lyon are into the Coupe de la Ligue final thanks to a 4-3 penalty shoot-out win over Lille after a 2-2 draw, which Loic Remy had secured with a controversial late spot-kick.

Rudi Garcia’s Lyon appeared to have rescued victory through Houssem Aouar’s wonderful goal in the 85th minute, only for Remy’s contentious kick to take the game to penalties, but the home side did eventually prevail thanks to Ciprian Tatarusanu making one save and Renato Sanches missing the target.

Portugal international Sanches had put Lille in front early on with a clinical finish from distance, though Lyon did not trail for long, as Moussa Dembele converted a penalty to level the score in a first half that was otherwise devoid of excitement.

The second half was not much better either until the latter stages, when Aouar netted in style before Remy levelled amid controversy to take the game to a shoot-out.

But Tatarusanu saved from Jonathan Bamba with the first kick, and Sanches shot wide to ultimately end Lille’s chances of reaching the final to face either Reims or Paris Saint-Germain.

A sloppy start from the hosts left them trailing in the 13th minute, as Sanches pounced on a loose ball just outside the area and fired a left-footed effort into the bottom-right corner.

But that jolted Lyon into life and they were level with their next attack – Dembele smashing home a penalty after Gabriel was adjudged to have handled a cross following a VAR review.

Chances were infrequent for the remainder of the first half, with Aouar’s acrobatic effort, which went wide in the 39th minute, about all either side could muster.

Proceedings were similarly sedate for a while after the interval, but Aouar produced a moment of inspiration with five minutes left, showing good strength and close control before blasting into the bottom-right corner from around 25 yards.

But Rafael was then penalised for an apparent foul on Bamba in the box, and Remy cheekily chipped home the resulting penalty after a VAR review did not exonerate Lyon’s right-back.

Lyon eventually came through as victors, however, with Bamba seeing his penalty saved by Tatarusanu in the shoot-out before Sanches shot wide of the left-hand post, the home side scoring each of their four efforts.
 

What does it mean? A first trophy since 2012 in reach for Lyon

Considering their dominance of French football pre-2010, Lyon’s barren run of no trophies since 2012 is remarkable – their last coming in July 2012 when winning the Trophee des Champions.

While it will likely be PSG in their way in the final, OL at least have an opportunity to end their wait.

Marcal a rock at the back

It was not a match in which many individuals stood out for displays of brilliance, but Marcal was certainly one of the better performers.

The Brazilian centre-back made seven tackles, four clearances and four interceptions, while he came out on top in 91 per cent of his 23 duels. You cannot ask for much more than that.

Osimhen fails to inspire

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Lille’s young star had a frustrating day. While he can legitimately point to coming in for some rough treatment, Osimhen had the fewest touches of any player who started the match and failed to register a single shot.

What’s next?

It is back to Ligue 1 action for these two at the weekend. Lyon host Toulouse, while Lille welcome PSG.