With the start of John Textor’s presidency at Lyon heralding structural changes across the board, the American businessman will now be looking to integrate the Ligue 1 side as a key part of the network of clubs he has established through Eagle Football Holdings.
This will ostensibly involve close cooperation with another club he is majority shareholder of, in Brazil’s Botafogo. Lyon already bought 23-year-old forward Jeffinho from the Rio de Janeiro club back in the winter transfer window – and the Brazilian looks set to be the first of many to make that same move.
In an interview with O Globo, the Crystal Palace minority shareholder has indicated that Lyon could look to buy young talent from South America and send them to Botafogo on loan, or as part of a co-ownership arrangement:
“Lyon’s capital will start to help out Botafogo. We are considering using Lyon’s capital to buy South American players, who will play here first. They will be bought by Lyon, but will play for Botafogo. It could be a loan deal, or a collaborative transfer where the clubs share the rights.”
He adds, though, that the intention is not to make Botafogo a feeder club for Lyon, and that the Brazilian side’s best players will not automatically be sent to France. The investors explains that the four spots in the squad for non-EU players at Lyon should go to starters, and that Lyon could have a stake in “12, 15 players that will compete for those spots”.
GFFN | Raphaël Jucobin
