Laurent Blanc will need all of his defensive nous to succeed at Lyon

Despite being known as a stoic and intelligent centre-back, Laurent Blanc is Montpellier’s all-time top goalscorer. After graduating from the club’s youth system as a midfielder, Blanc scored 84 goals for the club between 1983 and 1991. Blanc retreated into defence as his career progressed, winning trophies for Auxerre, Barcelona, Manchester United and the France national team.

Now Blanc the coach has been appointed by Lyon to bring about a defensive revolution at the club. Blanc’s task is to add solidity to an attacking approach that was haphazardly installed by Peter Bosz, the man he replaces. Blanc is a calming influence, but repeating the defensive transition he achieved during his playing days will be a difficult task.

Bosz’s style never truly fit Lyon, or Ligue 1. His previous successes with Ajax and, briefly, Bayer Leverkusen were achieved in more entropic divisions. Despite a recent tactical revolution, Ligue 1 remains a physical league full of powerful, well drilled defences and Lyon’s attacking approach under Bosz was easily exposed by more results-oriented teams.

Finding the right balance was a constant concern. Bosz tended to stick to his principles stubbornly, which gave the team a soft centre. There were gaps in midfield; the team often lacked a true holding player; and their defensive lines were eagerly exploited by less talented teams who were able to counter swiftly. Although Ligue 1 is moving away from the slow, defensive attitudes that were popular a decade ago, compact teams still know how to defend against stronger foes and Lyon regularly struggled to overwhelm opponents.

Lyon scored an impressive 66 goals last season – only Rennes and PSG scored more – however they also conceded 51, more than any