Lyon’s American owner John Textor has insisted there is “no chance” the French side will be relegated from Ligue 1.
Textor spoke for two hours at a hastily arranged press conference on Saturday in response to Friday’s decision to provisionally relegate the seven-time French champions to Ligue 2.
The Direction Nationale du Controle de Gestion (DNCG, the French football watchdog) yesterday ruled Lyon would be relegated unless they substantially improve their troubling financial situation before the end of the season in May. The club were also hit with a transfer ban for the January window.
Yet Textor — whose Eagle Football Group bought a 77 per cent stake in Lyon in 2022, alongside owning controlling stakes in Brazilian club Botafogo and RWD Molenbeek of Belgium and a minority stake in Premier League side Crystal Palace — bullishly claimed he was “very optimistic” about the club’s future and was adamant the club would not face demotion to Ligue 2.
In a bizarre chain of events, Saturday morning’s press conference was delayed by around an hour. Journalists present said on social media that they were then informed they could not report what was happening in real time and the event was not recorded live because Textor said he had a cold.
In comments carried by L’Equipe, among other French outlets, Textor said Lyon was “not a club in danger” and suggested he could stave off any threat by raising money through the sale of his 45 per cent stake in Palace.
In May, Textor confirmed he was looking to sell his Palace shares and had appointed the Raine Group to actively seek a buyer. On Saturday, he said there were four potential buyers interested in his stake at Palace. “They will not buy at the amount I had wished for,” he said, via RMC Sport. “But it’s a lot more money than necessary for what Lyon needs.”
Palace fans have protested against Textor’s involvement in their club (Adam Davy/PA Images via Getty Images)
Textor said, via L’Equipe, Lyon needed to cover around €100million (£83.6m; $105m) between now and the end of the year.
“We will not be relegated, there is no chance,” the 59-year-old added. “I know that our situation makes some sceptical. I prefer the Premier League system which punishes clubs differently. We have resources that go well beyond the club. Even if we fail on all our global initiatives, of €700 million, our owners will not let the group sink. There is no chance of being relegated.”
Textor claimed the DNCG had not taken into account their figures as a multi-club group, where all the clubs contribute and there is collaboration between them. He was also angry the DNCG response had been made public and not remained confidential.
The most recent set of Eagle Football Group accounts, posted this month, showed its financial debt was €505.1m.
Despite the DNCG decision, Textor claimed Lyon would not be forced to sell their best players, including Rayan Cherki, and would only let them leave for the right price. However, he acknowledged Lyon had “six players too many” and needed to trim the squad.
Lyon are fifth in Ligue 1 and are also competing in this season’s Europa League, where they are ninth.
(Top photo: Lucas Figueiredo/Getty Images)
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