06 December 2023 , 14:04
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Crisis club Lyon likely wouldn't be able to play a crucial Ligue 1 relegation play-off at their own stadium - because of Taylor Swift.
The American music megastar is continuing her immensely popular Eras Tour next summer and has booked two dates at the club's £400million state-of-the-art home stadium. Swift's appearances on Sunday, June 2 and Monday, June 3 are set give Lyon a much-needed financial boost, but her concerts are due to clash with the second leg of the play-offs which would be played at the Parc Olympique Lyonnais should the struggling giants finish 16th in Ligue 1.
Like in the German Bundesliga, the third-worst team from the top flight plays two games against the side who finished third in the division below. Losing home advantage would be a significant blow for French heavyweights Lyon, who are currently five points adrift of even making the play-offs.
Having sacked both Laurent Blanc and Fabio Grosso in the past three months, managerless Lyon are rock bottom after collecting only seven points from 13 games. Although the cash-strapped club lost star players such as Houssem Aouar, Castello Lukeba, Bradley Barcola and Malo Gusto over the summer, they still boast an array of talent which shouldn't be anywhere near a relegation battle.
Former Arsenal striker Alexandre Lacazette has scored just three league goals this term, while ex- Liverpool defender Dejan Lovren has been unable to prevent Lyon from conceding a woeful 24. One-time wonderkid Rayan Cherki is also underperforming and their joint-top goalscorer is 22-year-old Irish centre-back Jake O'Brien.
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This all comes little over three years after Lyon beat Manchester City to reach the Champions League semi-finals. At this stage, the best entertainment locals can hope for is to see Swift perform her dazzling three-hour show, featuring songs from all 10 of her critically-acclaimed albums.
The 33-year-old singer-songwriter even added an extra night at the Parc Olympique Lyonnais, now called the Groupama Stadium for sponsorship reasons after opening in 2016, due to feverish demand from Swifties. She'll also perform at a series of other European football stadiums, including the Bernabeu, Wembley, Anfield, San Siro and the Johan Cruyff Arena.
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Lyon have only won one game this season, leaving them 18th and rock bottom of Ligue 1 (JEFF PACHOUD/AFP via Getty Images)Lyon might have to take finishing 16th in the table at this rate, with Italian boss Grosso receiving his marching orders last Thursday. Interim manager Pierre Sage got off to a dream start in their clash with Champions League side Lens on Saturday, going 1-0 up through O'Brien's goal on 15 minutes.
Sage then came back down to Earth as Lens turned it around through goals from Wesley Said and Przemyslaw Frankowski. Crystal Palace academy product O'Brien then popped up with his third strike of the campaign to equalise before Lyon were condemned to their eighth defeat of the season when half-time substitute Frankowski bagged his second and made it 3-2.