After 30 short seconds of play, the Lyon bench got restless. Houssem Aouar left for the warm-up in disaster. The blow received by Lucas Paqueta in the head, in blood after a clash with Pepe, seemed serious enough to wonder if the Brazilian would be able to continue the meeting. The captain of FC Porto did not go further than half-time, unlike the player of Olympique Lyonnais, who played the entire match well. Fortunately for Les Gones, because their playmaker was the only scorer in this round of 16 first leg of the Europa League (1-0), Wednesday March 9.
At the end of his 90-minute effort, we would bet that Paqueta has enough to pour out on this meeting as he was omnipresent, for good as for bad. So there was this shock to the head, this bandage placed on his skull to contain the bleeding and a first period to recover from it. The Brazilian was indeed uninspired during the first 45 minutes, in his offensive and defensive choices.
In the 28th minute, Paqueta thus tried a roulette on a recovery phase of his team, to finally lose the ball at the expense of Vitinha. Without consequence, this heat stroke for the Lyonnais which made their coach react in his technical area. “He made this mistake, he tried a ‘Zidane’. It wasn’t right“, then explained Peter Bosz at a press conference. Sometimes a picture is worth 1,000 words: as OL were preparing to play a counter-attack just before half-time, Paqueta slipped, annihilating a good situation in Lyon (45+3rd).
Fortunately for OL, Paqueta raised his level of play in the second half. “He was amazing“, enthused Peter Bosz. Untouchable during the first months of the season, then considered by some to be the best player in Ligue 1, Paqueta has since had some difficulty maintaining this very high level of performance. in the second act the Brazilian from the start of the season, the one who pulls everyone up.
How it started: How it ended: pic.twitter.com/SmPo6JtRFb
— Olympique Lyonnais (@OL) March 9, 2022
The Lyon playmaker first put himself in condition by attempting a first shot low to the ground, well out by Diogo Costa (54th). Five minutes later, the FC Porto goalkeeper could do nothing on the flat of the surgical foot of Paqueta, perfectly served by Moussa Dembélé (59th). Party to celebrate, his headband stained with blood, his first goal with the 400 Lyon supporters present Wednesday at the Estadio do Dragao, Paqueta had to wait a few seconds to see the VAR validate his ninth goal of the season.
An achievement that confirmed a perfect start to the second period for OL and the Brazilian. “Lucas was extraordinary. He showed all his qualities. He was really strong and not just because he scored but for all the work he did on his positioning, on keeping balls“, explained Peter Bosz after the match. But after the explosion of joy, there was frustration.
The referee of the meeting, José Maria Martinez Sanchez, whistled five minutes later a hand from Paqueta in the box … finally canceled by the VAR, because the ball had touched the thigh of the Brazilian before his hand. “I think the decisions were fair. It was logical that there was no penalty. We are happy when the decisions are favorable to our team“, welcomed Maxence Caqueret, still very good Wednesday evening, in a post-match press conference.
Unhappy ten days ago with the refereeing decisions in the match against Lille in Ligue 1 (0-1), during which he equalized at the very last minute before the referee canceled his goal, Paqueta therefore had to savor these two whistles in his favour. Before ending the match by defending, like all his team, the advantage taken by OL in this double confrontation.
Always as valuable, Paqueta shone on a Wednesday, during an evening usually devoted to the Champions League. The Brazilian artist is destined to shine one day in the greatest of European competitions. “But we can talk about all the players tonight, who were really at a very high level“, underlined Peter Bosz. Lucas Paqueta, he stood out from the lot in all respects in this meeting.