A week after its debacle at home against Racing Club de Lens (0-3), Olympique Lyonnais returned to victory this Saturday, during the 25th day, on the Lorient pitch thanks to Nicolas Tagliafico and Mama Baldé (0-2).
The Lyonnais have a third consecutive away victory in Ligue 1, after Metz (1-2) and Montpellier (1-2), and move up to tenth place in the standings, with 31 points.
For its part, Lorient was unable to build on its good momentum, after its great victory in the Breton derby (1-2) on the Rennes pitch last week.
Régis Le Bris had however chosen to renew the same eleven as at Roazhon Park.
Before this match, the Merlus had won four of their last five matches (1-0 home defeat against Nantes).
With this twelfth defeat in the league, Lorient remains one point behind Le Havre and five away from the relegation zone.
Deprived of Ernest Numah but especially of their captain Alexandre Lacazette, spared for the second time in a row for a hematoma in the thigh, OL were finally able to win.
Until now, he had only one victory for two draws and above all four defeats, when the “General” was not there.
After Gift Orban against Lens, Pierre Sage this time chose to replace the former Gunner with Mama Baldé.
A choice that paid off since the Bissaoguinean scored his first goal in Lyon colors (after 14 matches) shortly after the hour mark, on a counter well played by Maxence Caqueret who launched it deep three against one.
After eliminating Yvan Mvogo with a hook, Baldé pushed the ball into the empty goals, despite Timoué Bakayoko's vain attempt to prevent him from hitting the target (65th), before giving up his place.
Thirteen minutes earlier, Lyon had opened the scoring thanks to a header from Nicolas Tagliafico receiving a good cross from Clinton Mata, who tried his hand at shooting several times in the first half.
“We have to be more clinical to score,” Lyonnais Jake O'Brien summed up very well at half-time.
A call of course heard by his teammates.
Not a single shot on target for the Merlus
The Breton goalkeeper, Yvan Mvogo, kept the Rhone score open for a long time.
Without Montassar Talbi, injured in the shoulder, the Lorientais, who wore a collector's jersey for the centenary of the stadium, did not score a single shot in the match and suffered greatly when the Lyonnais confiscated the ball in the first period, despite the score was blank at the break.
“We were keen to get back on our feet” explained Maxence Caqueret after the meeting.
The heavy defeat against Lens is therefore already forgotten for the Lyonnais.
Qualified in the semi-final of the Coupe de France, they regained confidence and victory before making a second trip to Toulouse on March 15.