Over the course of the January transfer window, we will take a closer look at the best of the week’s business with our ‘Transfer of the Week’ columns. This time, we will focus on Lyon’s double signing of Gift Orban and Malick Fofana from Gent.
By Neel Shelat
Lyon have not had a great first half of the season, to put it mildly. Les Gones spent a good deal of time at the very bottom of the standings as they were the last team to register a Ligue 1 win this term. Even since then, they have only managed to climb up to 16th place as we enter the second half of the season.
A real relegation battle seems in store for OL, but regardless of how that ends, they look well on course to register their worst top-flight finish in at least three decades.
Clearly, things need some shaking up at the Groupama Stadium. Of course, they have already changed head coaches as Pierre Sage has taken over from Fabio Grosso, who himself was a mid-season replacement for Laurent Blanc. Their form has improved under Sage, but they could certainly do with a bit of help in the transfer window to strengthen their squad.
With that in mind, it becomes easy to understand why Lyon have already spent more in this winter transfer window than they have in any of the last three summers. A massive chunk of that money has gone to Gent, who have received a total of around €29 million for parting with Gift Orban and Malick Fofana in two separate deals.
Gift Orban (€12M)
Orban definitely is the more well-known of the two players, having put up some eye-catching goal-scoring numbers at Stabæk in Norway before moving to Gent, for whom he has barely slowed down.
The Nigerian striker proceeded to tear up the league right after landing in Belgium, scoring 15 goals in just the second half of the 2022/23 campaign. His tally was built on some serious xG overperformance, which can partly be put down to his incredibly clinical finishing thanks to his top-class ball-striking ability on his right foot, but the variance/luck factor must also be considered.
He is already starting to feel the effect of that this season, returning with just 3 goals in 17 league appearances so far. The 21-year-old forward does have 9 goals in 10 UEFA Europa Conference League matches, though, including the fastest-ever hat-trick in the competition’s history.
All things considered, is it realistic to expect Orban to get back to scoring a goal a game in France? Absolutely not. However, his underlying shooting metrics suggest that he should be able to average a goal every two games with all else being equal, which is not a bad return at all.
Adding a player of Orban’s potential is an important move for Lyon because they desperately need some more goal-threat in their squad. Besides 32-year-old forward Alexandre Lacazette, the only Lyon player to score multiple Ligue 1 goals this season is centre-back Jake O’Brien!
A fee of €12m seems fair enough given Orban’s overall track record so far. It is also a very handy profit for Gent as they signed him for around a quarter of that just one year ago, so all parties should surely be pleased with this deal.
Malick Fofana (€17M)
Even before the Orban transfer was in the works, Lyon had completed one signing from Gent. Malick Fofana moved for a reported transfer fee of €17m, making him the most expensive Ligue 1 signing of the window.
The Belgian youngster is not quite so well known as he has only started senior matches regularly this season. In the first half of the campaign, he has made the left wing-back spot in Gent’s 3-4-1-2 formation his own, returning with 8 goal involvements in all competitions.
The teenager spent most of his youth career as a winger, which explains quite a bit about his playing style. He got a lot of attacking freedom in Hein Vanhaezebrouck’s system, which he used to showcase his direct running and dribbling threat down the wing. What Lyon will be particularly interested in is his creativity – through crosses and cut-backs as well as angled through balls.
Their players have also struggled in this respect so far this term. No one but Rayan Cherki has registered more than one league assist, with the young Frenchman only managing three himself.
One of the reasons behind that is the glaring lack of a proper left winger in their squad. The only player of that description they had in the first half of the season was Chelsea loanee Diego Moreira, but he has not looked up to the mark having failed to register a goal or assist in any competition.
Fofana, on the other hand, has proven himself in what is a strong Belgian Pro League as well as the UECL, so he should be expected to come in and become a regular starter on the left of Lyon’s attack immediately. Make no mistake, €17m does seem a bit excessive for a player who still is quite a raw talent, but Lyon’s desperate situation perhaps warrants such spending on a one-off basis.
(Images from IMAGO)
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