France’s new money leaves old guard of Ligue 1 in the dust

Proposed anti-tax strike by French clubs put on back burner

Lucas, right, and Paris Saint-Germain are still unbeaten in Ligue 1 as the calendar prepares to flip over to 2014. Charles Platiau / Reuters

This was supposed to be the weekend that French professional football stood fast, postponed its fixtures and drew attention to its troubles by emptying the fixture list in protest against proposed government income-tax rises that, the country’s clubs argue, will weaken the sport.

The so-called strike was called off – or at least put back – once leading clubs realised public sympathy for their cause was limited.

One joke making the rounds is that for Paris Saint-Germain – a club with so much wealth that increased income-tax burdens mean only a minor adjustment rather than a budget crisis – most weekends are a weekend off, anyway.

“Are PSG too strong for Ligue 1?” asked the newspaper, le Parisien, after a 3-0 win at Stade de Reims extended the champions’ domestic run to seven victories from eight.

They have scored a formidable 21 goals in that sequence. PSG already have qualified, as group winners, for the next stage of the Uefa Champions League and seem destined to rewrite several French records by May.

Unbeaten so far this term, PSG target the 19-year-old landmark held by Nantes, of 32 successive games without a defeat in a single campaign.

Another 17 wins from their remaining 24 matches and they would beat the modern milestone for victories. They are progressing at well above par to match the modern record for points in a campaign, too. Lyon scored 84 in 2005-2006.

Lyon are the visitors on Sunday. Among their party are one or two who recall the era when questions like, “Is this team too strong for Ligue 1?” were asked of them.

Lyon won seven successive championships in the first decade of the 21st century and were the closest that French football came to an upstart force when they seized the first.

With the sudden, recent influx of overseas wealth into the French club game, first through the Qatari backers of PSG and then Russian billions into Monaco, Lyon find themselves cast as representatives of the old establishment, vexed with matters like a 75 per cent tax burden on their highest-earning players.

Goalkeeper Remy Vercoutre, who shared in five of Lyon’s titles, describes the expedition to the Parc des Princes as a “mountain to climb.

“If PSG are going to have a slip-up this season, we have to hope it’s against us,” he said.

“It’s one of those nights in football when, to win, we will have to be at our very best, but also they would need to have one of their less-good performances.”

No goalkeeper, in France or anywhere in Europe, travels to the Parc with much optimism.

Bearing down on him are Zlatan Ibrahimovic, in a mesmeric run of form, and, to his right, apparently content in a supporting role, the €65 million (Dh324.9m) Edinson Cavani. They have nine Ligue 1 goals apiece.

Selected fixtures

Saturday

Monaco v Rennes 8pm

Valenciennes v Lille 11pm

Guingamp v Nantes 11pm

Sunday

Paris Saint-Germain v Lyon midnight