Lens began the season fearing the worst. Now they’re beating the elite | Luke Entwistle

When the Lens president, Joseph Oughourlian, set out the club’s “number one objective” before the season, he did not mention European qualification, a points target or even a cup run. The task at hand was to “rediscover financial solidity”. Sporting ambitions have taken a backseat role at Lens since Oughourlian announced the introduction of austerity measures in the summer of 2024. His words have been mirrored in the club’s actions.

Since running Paris Saint-Germain close for the title in the 2022-23 season, when they finished just one point behind the eventual champions, the Lens squad has been decimated. First, it was Seko Fofana and Loïs Openda; then it was Abdukodir Khusanov, Elye Wahi, Brice Samba and Kevin Danso; and this summer it was Neil El-Aynaoui, Andy Diouf and Facundo Medina.

There ​have been no significant funds to buy replacements and, unlike local rivals Lille, ​​Lens cannot lean on the strength of their academy to fill the gaps. Over the last five years, only Lille, Monaco and Lyon have made more profit from transfers. The common thread among these clubs is that they develop talent; Lens, historically, do not. Their positive balance sheet reflects their decision to sell players but not reinvest heavily on replacements.

The manager’s job is to prevent the effects of the incremental talent drain being felt on the pitch – to stave off the rot. That job fell to Will Still, whose sole season with Lens ended with an eighth-place finish. In his 34 Ligue 1 matches, he scored par; Pierre Sage, his replacement, has shot an excellent front nine.

Lens fans are enjoying an unexpectedly good start to the season. Photograph: Jean-François Badias/AP

The man who orchestrated Lyon’s improbable rise from the relegation zone to the Europa League and the Coupe de France final two seasons ago was perhaps harshly cast aside by John Textor in January. The failure of his successor, Paulo Fonseca, to reach Lyon’s objectives in the second half of last season casts his spell in an even more positive light.

Sage is now orchestrating another unlikely European charge at Lens, who are just one point behind the leaders, PSG, after their 2-1 win against Marseille on Saturday. It is a remarkable start to the season given the club’s downgraded ambitions. “We’ll have the 10th highest wage bill in the league,” said Oughourlian. “To play in Europe, we have to overperform. Our DNA is being a solid, rooted club with a strong identity that plays constantly in Ligue 1. We won’t play in Europe every season.” But perhaps next season they will.

Prior to the season’s start, Sage suggested he was trying to pick up 35 points and stay in Ligue 1 before even thinking about Europe. But, as the captain Adrien Thomasson told us last month, there is a “fresh momentum” at the club, despite his understandable misgivings about the club’s spending. Thomasson added: “We were questioning ourselves because we lost important players from our team, be it young players or experienced players. Naturally, we want to be competitive, we want to be ambitious, so we asked ourselves how it would look this season and whether the players who replaced those who left would be at the same level.”

But Thomasson now speaks of a “more complete” team compared to last season. Samson Baidoo has been something of a revelation; Matthieu Udol has brought nous; Mamadou Sangaré is ensuring the effects of Diouf’s and El Aynaoui’s departures are not felt; and Odsonne Édouard, after warming the bench while on loan at Leicester City last season, has already scored three goals – including one in the win over Marseille.

Florian Thauvin, however, is the standout of those summer signings. He is enjoying a late-career revival that has even earned him a shock recall to the international setup, having not played for France for six years. He marked his return with a goal during the recent international break.

Sage is also getting more out of players who were already at the club. Malang Sarr had been written off by the time he saw his Chelsea contract terminated last year, and understandably so, after a poor spell on loan at Monaco. He has rediscovered his confidence and his form under Sage.

Florian Thauvin scored for France against Azerbaijan earlier this month. Photograph: Federico Pestellini/Shutterstock

The Lens manager has also repurposed Thomasson, moving him deeper into the midfield, where he has excelled. The captain says the new role “perfectly suits” him, and it is showing. He has five assists this season and is one of the top performers in the league. Thomasson embodies Lens’s quietly excellent season more generally. Expectations within the club are not sky high – just as they weren’t when they finished second – and yet they find themselves above Marseille and Monaco, whose names have been mentioned in the title conversation.

Oughourlian has been one of the most vocal critics of the powers that be in French football, turning his ire on the LFP and even calling the PSG president, Nasser Al-Khelaifi, a “bully” during a leaked meeting last season. His players are showing they have plenty of fight in them on the pitch too.

Talking points

Lille inflicted another heavy defeat on a promoted side, beating Metz 6-1. The win raised spirits after their 4-3 defeat to PAOK last week. Lille imploded on the pitch and off it during the Europa League game; the club’s owner, Olivier Létang, sent a message to the Uefa president, Aleksander Ceferin, at half-time to complain about the referee’s performance. Such outbursts are not entirely uncommon for Létang. The defeat leaves the Metz manager, Stéphane Le Mignan, in a very precarious position. Conceding at a rate of almost three goals per game and without a win, they are rock bottom of Ligue 1. The credit that Le Mignan accrued by bringing the club back into the top flight may have run out.

Normal service resumed as PSG ​returned to the top of Ligue 1 at the expense of Marseille. Achraf Hakimi’s two first-half goals made it a relatively comfortable afternoon, although Romain Del Castillo could have made it interesting for Brest had he not slipped while taking his second-half penalty. Désiré Doué rounded off the scoring in the 96th minute as PSG won 3-0. It was their first league win since 27 September.

This is an article by Get French Football News