Matthieu Louis-Jean explains Lyon's busy transfer window

Olympique Lyonnais sporting director Matthieu Louis-Jean says the club has strengthened its squad despite a demanding transfer window, with recruitment focused on adding depth and rotation options. He believes Lyon are better equipped than last season after working with coach Paulo Fonseca and the recruitment department.

The assessment came after Lyon’s 3-1 win over Auxerre, when new arrivals Felix Bacher and Zachary Athekame made an impact. The club also signed Kail Boudache, Mads Bidstrup, Julien Duranville, Mohamed Ouédraogo, Loïs Openda and Keito Nakamura. Nakamura joined as Malick Fofana departed during the final days of the window. Lyon’s sales brought in about €70 million, a figure Louis-Jean considers significant, although he believes the club could have done better.

One deal that did not happen involved Youssouf Fofana. The AC Milan midfielder had been expected to move to Lyon before joining Sevilla, but the French club could not complete the operation because of financial restrictions, particularly its wage bill. Louis-Jean said Lyon had wanted an athletic midfielder capable of breaking lines.

Nicolas Tagliafico also remains at the club after a proposed transfer to Atlético Madrid collapsed. The Argentina international had attracted interest from Atlético and Juventus, and Louis-Jean said he was unsure what would happen next because some transfer markets were still open. For now, Tagliafico remains part of Lyon’s squad.