Patrick Rees
Memphis Depay certainly struggled to find a footing in the rigours of the Premier League and many expected that his rich vein would return once he completed his recent £21.7m move to the Ligue 1 outfit Lyon. But that has not been the case for the 22-year-old.
Just like his arrival in Manchester, Lyon made a grand announcement themselves as soon as the transfer was finalized and many things were expected by then. Since the date, the former PSV hot-shot has made four appearances for the side and has been a complete anonymous figure for Bruno Génésio’s side.
French media aside, Lyon’s fans have started questioning the transfer.
Depay made his debut for the French giants last month and was quite impressive with his skills on the ball. But the last weekend’s encounter against Saint-Etienne – which Lyon lost by 2 goals to nil – was unarguably his worst performance in Lyon colours (of course, it is too early to judge).
Bruno Génésio, who is under pressure himself, decided to give Memphis his first start in the Ligue 1 and the Dutchman replaced their most trusted sheriff Mathieu Valbuena, but he failed miserably as he was unable of complete even a single dribble and was also failed to deliver a cross in the box. Besides that, he constantly lost the possession in dangerous areas and also missed a glorious on-be-one opportunity.
https://twitter.com/football_oranje/status/828563489451020288
French Media, L’Equipe, were a bit harsh in their judgement, as they rated him 2/10 and only Mammana was scored the same as he made a critical error which directly led to a goal. Depay was eventually replaced in an hour’s mark, but the manager defender Depay’s presence by saying:
‘Memphis has not played for some time,’ he was quoted by Metro.
‘He is full of quality, he is a player in whom I have complete confidence.
‘It is simply necessary that he regains rhythm, a physical level that allows him to express his qualities. There is no concern about that.’
Well, it is true that Memphis hasn’t been on the pitch for a while, but a performance like this was never expected from the talented Dutchman. Lyon are sitting on the 4th spot in the Ligue 1 table – just one point behind Saint-Etienne, also with a game in hand – and if they want to make it to the Champions League, the manager will have to make some harsh decisions which may include dropping the ex-United winger to the bench.
