The Professional Football League (LFP) froze the final ranking with a 7th place for Lyon, not qualified for Europe via the championship. Will you file an appeal and with whom?
Jean-Michel Aulas : It is always difficult to give details about the procedures which will be multiple. It would be to give a certain number of elements to those who are attacked to defend themselves better. We dispute three points. The stop of the championship decided by the LFP on a certain number of information which are not decrees of State, with in particular the last declarations of the minister (of Sports, Roxana Maracineanu) on the fact of being able to play behind closed doors and in front of less than 5,000 people (from next August, note). We find that the League has rushed to stop the championships. We had imagined a certain number of other scenarios, with play-offs which could have interested a certain number of broadcasters. Our European competitors will resume, like Germany and others probably.
» READ ALSO - Lyon is considering an appeal, Maracineanu calls for" everyone's responsibility "
There is also the choice of the League to retain this classification criterion chosen by the FFF which did not award the title of champion (in the case of amateur championships, note). We see that this classification is not logical. I don't want to attack a club more than another but Nice (5th) has played more than us at home and has only faced PSG once, and Lyon, two. It is not a decision without consequences, as for amateurs. There are considerable challenges. In the past ten years, OL have made up at least three times behind the second when they were more than ten points behind. It is a very important loss of chance, valued (financially). We will claim it in the form of damages, which amount to several tens of millions of euros.
"The governance in this episode was questionable"
What do you think of the governance of the League since the suspension of competitions due to the pandemic?
I think that the governance of the League has lived with this crisis. Noel Le Graët will have to draw the consequences as president of the French federation. Management was poorly done. There have been badly bordered decisions. The relationship with the broadcasters has been amazing. The governance in this episode was questionable, almost all of the presidents think so. There are probably different issues. There are a number of things that should not have happened and we will not stop there.
» READ ALSO - Ligue 1 and Ligue 2: the LFP formalizes the end of the season, Paris and Lorient sacred
Do you not fear for the competitiveness of French football compared to foreigners?
Of course. They will build muscle. The Germans are going to recover their TV rights, Spain, Italy and the others while we are going to rely on short-time working longer. We are not preparing to be competitive at European level. (...) If we have to play at the end of July or the beginning of August, we will resume around June 15-22 and we will have six to seven weeks of training for the re-athletics of the players after three months of stoppage. It will be necessary to prepare all the more important as our adversaries will be well trained and ready.
"If the appeals could succeed, that would make it possible to play in the Europa League ... and we can also go to the end in the Champions League"
What are the consequences for OL if you do not play in the European Cup next season?
We have already done part of the recruitment (like Tino Kadewere from Le Havre, editor's note) and we are going to exercise the option to buy Karl Toko-Ekambi (from Villarreal). So we already have a very good team. We will be recruiting as if we were to play in the European Cup, hoping that we will be there. We will have a better team next season. Our budget will be as if we qualified by the championship. If the remedies could succeed, it would play in the Europa League ... and we can also go to the end in the Champions League (OL is still in contention, with an 8 final return to play against Juventus after a victory 1-0 one way, note).
Read also
- PSG: Al-Khelaïfi dedicates the title "to medical staff and other everyday heroes"
