Match Focus: Wily Galtier Helps St Etienne to Undo Decimated Lyon

When your rival is wounded, of course, you have to go for the throat. Since 1994, Saint Etienne had won only one derby against their bitter adversaries Lyon (thanks to Dimitri Payet's fantastic free-kick at the Stade Gerland in 2010) going into Sunday's clash - the 108th between the pair. Having found myriad new ways to blow their chance in the showpiece, Les Verts finally got it right this time - but only just.

Lyon entered the match with eight injury absences from an already small squad, and a defence containing just one first-choice and so patched up with two redeployed midfielders. Remi Garde's best weapon for his ailing side was perhaps to recall their mastery of the occasion in the last few decades. The November meeting between the pair at the Geoffroy-Guichard, won with the last touch of the match by Jimmy Briand after Sainté dominated, was a case in point.

Yet even if Les Verts can often seem cowed by the gravity of the derby, their leader isn't. Christophe Galtier, undoubtedly one of the brightest coaches in Ligue 1, had a plan to get at the home side. He posted ex-Lyon player Francois Clerc and Benoit Tremoulinas as wing-backs to try and make the most of facing OL's midfield diamond, and the resulting space at either side of it. One immediately sensed Galtier's opposite number Remi Garde might regret being forced to use young Corentin Tolisso at right-back against the experienced Tremoulinas in particular. The plan recalled poor Jordan Ferri's ordeal against Montpellier's Remy Cabella, when the midfielder was making only his 4th Ligue 1 start back in September.

Galtier's tactic played a key role in the match. Tremoulinas had a match-high 83 touches, and was consistently the visitors' most advanced player outside the front pair of Mevlut Erding and Brandao. Tolisso gamely joined the attack in the first 20 minutes, though it was Clerc who had the first major chance of the match halfway through the first period, finding plentiful space on the Lyon left to draw an excellent save from Anthony Lopes.

Lyon lost possession more and more frequently in central areas (Ferri, left as midfield holder with captain Maxime Gonalons required at centre-back, only landed 67% of his first-half passes), inviting pressure - so it wasn't too much of a surprise to see Les Verts take the lead just before the half-hour by using both wide areas in the same move. Tremoulinas crossed from deep on the left, with Brandao heading down from a vacant area on the right to allow Mevlut Erding to steal in and finish.

It was one thing recognising the danger and another erasing it, with Lyon struggling to stem the flow, particularly on their own left-hand side. Perhaps more damaging was Clerc's ability to block Henri Bedimo's forward runs. The adventurous left-back has contributed 7 assists this season (with an average 1.2 key passes per game) but averaged a position in his own half, and delivered no key passes.

Lyon needed to find help from somewhere else, and they did, through the unlikely source of Bafetimbi Gomis. The 11-goal France forward habitually contributes little to team interplay when not scoring, but he was his side's outstanding performer here (rating 7.3), and created the leveller with his first assist of the Ligue 1 season. When he unexpectedly won possession on the right, he had the presence of mind to take out Moustapha Bayal Sall with a sidestep and Sainté were quickly outnumbered. Gomis' excellent pass then put in Alexandre Lacazette for a high-quality equaliser. The home side's one effort on target in the first period had paid dividends. Sainté had otherwise restricted them to speculative shots from outside the area, such as those by Arnold Mvuemba and Steed Malbranque.

Garde relied on his players' ability to improvise throughout, as he attempted to shuffle a limited pack. Yoann Gourcuff's half-time withdrawal - the playmaker was the victim of one of a series of very poor challenges in the first half - saw his fellow Rennes youth product Jimmy Briand replace him and Lacazette move back to the tip of the diamond. Though Gourcuff had intermittently threatened, his pass completion rate was a disappointing 69%. Briand's introduction, with his inclination to peel away to the left (as shown on WhoScored's average position chart) allowing Lyon to stretch the visitors more, and tentatively began to make up for an uncharacteristically quiet showing for the returning Bedimo.

These were crumbs of succour for Lyon, who tired badly as the second period progressed. This, of course, doesn't bode well for an April which includes a Europa League double-header with Juventus and two meetings with Paris Saint-Germain. When Malbranque was replaced by Gaël Danic in the 78th minute, one sensed it was a change forced by fatigue rather than genuinely chosen. By this time, Sainté substitute Max Gradel had swept home after Lopes failed to hold a Renaud Cohade cross, and it had been coming. It was the match in microcosm, with Sainté just about mastering their nerves and taking advantage of Lyon's caprices. Gradel's goal was one of only 5 efforts on goal by the away side - all on target.

Danic's arrival saw Garde switch to a flatter 4-4-2, with he and Lacazette as the wide men and Briand and Gomis becoming a central pair. Maybe executing the switch earlier would have given Lyon a little more impetus, though it's hard to criticise a side than had twice as many shots on goal as their opponents (12 to 6). In the end, it was Saint Etienne who showed the derby sang froid that has been Lyon's trademark. Perhaps the balance of regional power really is going to change this season. 

Can St Etienne finish above their rivals Lyon this season? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below