7 December 2011 - Lyon Beats The Odds

On 7 December 2011, Lyon advanced in the Champions League despite starting the day from what seemed to be an impossible position.

It was the last day of the group stage and Lyon were in third, behind leaders Real Madrid and second-place Ajax. Lyon were three points behind the Dutch and needed both an Ajax loss and a win of their own over Dinamo Zagreb in order to draw level on points. But the challenge did not stop there. They also needed to make up a 7-goal gap in differential, which was a tough ask given that Lyon had scored only twice in their other five group stage matches (both against Zagreb).

Playing at Dinamo's Stadion Maksimir, the hill grew even steeper after Zagreb took the lead with a 40th-minute goal from midfielder Mateo Kovačić (despite losing midfielder Jerko Leko to a 28th-minute red card). But Bafétimbi Gomis equalized for Lyon just before the break.

The second half belonged to Lyon. By the 70th minute, they were up 1-6 with a goal from Maxime Gonalons (47'), one from Lisandro López (64'), and three more from Gomis (48', 52', 70'). At the same time, Real Madrid were on top of Ajax 0-2, bringing Lyon level with the Dutch on goal differential. Then Jimmy Briand pushed Lyon ahead with a final goal against Zagreb in the 75th minute and Real Madrid added another against Ajax in stoppage time to put Ajax's differential at zero and Lyon's at +2.

Lyon's reward for the improbable result was a trip to the Round of 16, where they were eliminated on penalties by APOEL.

21 April 2007 - Lyon Was Lying In Wait

On 21 April 2007, Lyon clinched their sixth consecutive Ligue 1 title, even though they didn't play that day.

The critical match was at Rennes, who were hosting second-place Toulouse. Going into the match, Toulouse were eighteen points back with six matches left to play. So in order to steal the title away from Lyon, Toulouse needed to win all six of their matches, have Lyon fail to take a point from their remaining six matches, and make up a 27-goal gap in differential between the two teams.

It was unlikely task, but Toulouse got off to a good start when they took a first half lead with a goal from midfielder Achille Emana (30'). Rennes drew level, however, with a 63rd-minute penalty kick from Jimmy Briand (pictured), then claimed the advantage with a goal from Sylvain Marveaux (75'). An own goal from Briand in the 77th minute extended a lifeline to Toulouse, but as the visitors pressed forward, Rennes midfielder Bruno Cheyrou sealed the day for the hosts with a goal three minutes from time.

As it turned out, Lyon would have taken the title anyway, as they won three and drew two of their remaining matches to finish seventeen points clear of Marseille (Toulouse finished in third).

The result made Lyon champions for a record sixth straight season, the first time any team from the "Big 5" European leagues had managed such a feat. They then extended the record to seven the following season.

7 December 2011 - Lyon Beats The Odds

On 7 December 2011, Lyon advanced in the Champions League despite starting the day from what seemed to be an impossible position.

It was the last day of the group stage and Lyon were in third, behind leaders Real Madrid and second-place Ajax. Lyon were three points behind the Dutch and needed both an Ajax loss and a win of their own over Dinamo Zagreb in order to draw level on points. But the challenge did not stop there. They also needed to make up a 7-goal gap in differential, which was a tough ask given that Lyon had scored only twice in their other five group stage matches (both against Zagreb).

Playing at Dinamo's Stadion Maksimir, the hill grew even steeper after Zagreb took the lead with a 40th-minute goal from midfielder Mateo Kovačić (despite losing midfielder Jerko Leko to a 28th-minute red card). But Bafétimbi Gomis equalized for Lyon just before the break.

The second half belonged to Lyon. By the 70th minute, they were up 1-6 with a goal from Maxime Gonalons (47'), one from Lisandro López (64'), and three more from Gomis (48', 52', 70'). At the same time, Real Madrid were on top of Ajax 0-2, bringing Lyon level with the Dutch on goal differential. Then Jimmy Briand pushed Lyon ahead with a final goal against Zagreb in the 75th minute and Real Madrid added another against Ajax in stoppage time to put Ajax's differential at zero and Lyon's at +2.

Lyon's reward for the improbable result was a trip to the Round of 16, where they were eliminated on penalties by APOEL.

21 April 2007 - Lyon Was Lying In Wait

On 21 April 2007, Lyon clinched their sixth consecutive Ligue 1 title, even though they didn't play that day.

The critical match was at Rennes, who were hosting second-place Toulouse. Going into the match, Toulouse were eighteen points back with six matches left to play. So in order to steal the title away from Lyon, Toulouse needed to win all six of their matches, have Lyon fail to take a point from their remaining six matches, and make up a 27-goal gap in differential between the two teams.

It was unlikely task, but Toulouse got off to a good start when they took a first half lead with a goal from midfielder Achille Emana (30'). Rennes drew level, however, with a 63rd-minute penalty kick from Jimmy Briand (pictured), then claimed the advantage with a goal from Sylvain Marveaux (75'). An own goal from Briand in the 77th minute extended a lifeline to Toulouse, but as the visitors pressed forward, Rennes midfielder Bruno Cheyrou sealed the day for the hosts with a goal three minutes from time.

As it turned out, Lyon would have taken the title anyway, as they won three and drew two of their remaining matches to finish seventeen points clear of Marseille (Toulouse finished in third).

The result made Lyon champions for a record sixth straight season, the first time any team from the "Big 5" European leagues had managed such a feat. They then extended the record to seven the following season.