Paris Saint-Germain took on Lyon at Groupama Stadium this weekend as part of the 23rd round of Ligue 1 2024-2025. John Textor, president of the Lyon team, spoke to DAZN after the 2-3 victory (video highlights Lyon/PSG). He spoke of a difficult and intense match, but also of the tensions with his Parisian counterpart Nasser Al-Khelaïfi and PSG.
Textor “I’m very proud of my players.
How do you feel after this match? Without your hat.
I wore a hat because I was very confident. Right now, I don’t really feel like a cowboy.
Was that a smile for Nasser Al-Khelaïfi?
We had a lot of discussions with him. I didn’t even know he’d called me a cowboy, but a lot of people did. I don’t even know how to ride a horse.
Is it possible to make peace with Nasser?
It’s not personal at all. I just wanted everyone to be on the same level, especially with the rules. I’m not just fighting for OL, but for the whole League. It’s not a question of politics, tonight was the players’ night.
It was an All Star team we met tonight, and they’re very strong. I’m very proud of my players and they fought right to the end. The third goal was difficult, we should have stayed and tried to maintain that intensity. I think we could have come away with a point, and I think we learned something about the team tonight.
Textor “What’s crazy is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.”
What’s your goal for the end of the season?
I think it’s possible to qualify for the Champions League. We’ve been almost at the same level as one of Europe’s top teams.
We’ve got big goals, behind Marseille with Monaco and Lille, to try and fight it out in this division. We need to try and overtake some of them.
Before the match, did you talk to the coach about any questions you might have had, particularly about Cherki’s position?
Yes, we had a very quiet chat and he doesn’t need my soccer advice. He’s very nice when he tells me what he wants to achieve. Then it’s much more interesting to watch when I have that information.
We had to do something different. What’s crazy is always doing the same thing and expecting a different result. We created chances tonight.
Textor “Everyone has to play by the same rules. You can’t have the same winner 20 years in a row.”
Do you have a public message for Nasser?
No, I don’t have a personal message for him. He knows he can call me at any time. The television story really isn’t just about me, but it was a joint call. Everyone has to play by the same rules. You can’t have the same winner 20 years in a row, that’s not possible. We have to play by the rules.
