PLAYER RATINGS | Lyon 4-2 Le Havre: OL’s substitutes inspire a late comeback
Ligue 1 McDonald’s, Round 26, 16/03/25
Finding themselves behind with 15 minutes to go, two goals from second-half substitutes Georges Mikautadze and Malick Fofana and a third from Thiago Almada were enough to inspire a late comeback and provide Lyon with all three points. Les Gones now sit two points behind OGC Nice in fourth.
The match
Searching for his first Lyon goal, Almada had the first clear chance of the game with a looping header, but his effort couldn’t trouble Gorgelin. VAR intervened after 20 minutes and awarded a penalty to the home side following a robust challenge from Youté on Tagliafico. Lacazette stepped up and made no mistake as he confidently dispatched his spot-kick to give OL the lead.
Less than ten minutes later, VAR were involved again, this time to award a penalty to the visitors. Nuamah was penalised for a clumsy challenge on Ketcha. Abdoulaye Touré equalised from the spot with a deftly dinked finish.
Nuamah thought he had made up for his earlier mistake when he applied the finish to Almada’s through ball, but a VAR review showed the Ghanaian attacker was offside. Nevertheless, it would be the away team that had the lead at the break. Soumaré caught Matić napping in midfield and created an overload before Casimir’s excellent first touch allowed him to apply the finish beyond Perri with his second touch. Le Havre’s lead at the break was deserved, with the visitors providing a greater attacking threat than the hosts.
Thiago Almada went agonisingly close to levelling the game as he hit the post with a curling effort from distance. Maitland-Niles teed up an opportunity for Lacazette to strike, but the OL captain’s effort was saved as Lyon’s attempts to find an equaliser became more desperate. The former Arsenal forward then tried to round Gorgelin but failed.
It would be OL’s substitutes that found an equaliser. Georges Mikautadze slid Malick Fofana through on goal, and the Belgian attacker managed to round Gorgelin and apply a finish from a closing angle to level the match. The substitutes would then give Lyon the lead. Mikautadze took advantage of Le Havre’s failure to clear a corner as the ball fell to him, and he hit a thunderous first-time strike into the roof of the net.
Almada completed Les Gones’ second-half comeback with a low finish beyond Gorgelin after Mikautadze laid the ball to him on a plate. Lyon now sit 2 points outside the UEFA Champions League spots.
Lyon player ratings:
Lucas Perri – 4
Ainsley Maitland-Niles – 4
Clinton Mata – 5
Moussa Niakhaté – 5
Nicolás Tagliafico – 6
Nemanja Matić – 3
Normally dependable, the former Serbian international had a first half to forget. After picking up the first booking of the game and being forced into an error for Le Havre’s goal due to being too casual on the ball, the defensive midfielder was substituted at the break. (45′) Replaced by Tanner Tessmann – 5.
Corentin Tolisso – 5
Ernest Nuamah – 3
Rayan Cherki – 4
Thiago Almada – 8
The Argentine was a thorn in the side of the visitors all afternoon. Relinquishing some of the creative responsibilities from Cherki, Almada was OL’s chief creator and continually fashioned openings for his side. The attacking midfielder was rewarded late on with his first goal for his new club.
Alexandre Lacazette – 6
Back in the side, the Lyon captain made his presence felt with the first goal of the game from the penalty spot. The Frenchman’s all-round game was positive, with his hold-up play influential in OL’s forrays forward.
Selected Le Havre player ratings:
Josué Casimir – 6
Étienne Youté – 4
Yassine Kechta – 6
The Morrocan international was influential for the away side in attack. His low centre of gravity and fancy footwork allowed him to evade the advances of opposition players, and he impressed with his choice of pass in advanced areas.
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