Lyon narrowly prevail in thrilling five goal encounter with struggling Auxerre in Ligue 1

Olympique Lyons recent performances were rather odd heading into this late spring fixture, coming after a remarkable 13 match winning sequence that was succeeded by nine outings without a triumph.

Nevertheless, the team entered this mid afternoon showdown with consecutive wins under their belt which included a 2 1 away victory over Paris Saint Germain in the previous weekend and Paulo Fonsecas squad began strongly with Afonso Moreira picking up the ball from the right edge of the penalty area. However his pass to Yaremchuk went just wide missing the Ukrainians touch by inches.

Yaremchuk did not have to wait long to celebrate however as Abner Vinicius delivered a cross from the left flank in the 19th minute and the forward was ideally positioned to direct the ball past the keeper for his second league strike since arriving on loan in January.

Yet Lyon suffered a setback just past the 30 minute point when Orel Mangala had to leave the pitch due to an injury.

To compound matters further Auxerre levelled the score in somewhat lucky fashion only a minute afterwards when a long range free kick was curled into the penalty area and nodded back towards goal.

The hosts struggled to defend properly and following a chaotic scramble in front of goal Lyon old boy Sinaly Diomande poked the ball in to quieten the majority of the crowd.

Lyon took control shortly after the break and nearly regained their advantage early in the second period but Endricks close range attempt was superbly stopped by Theo De Percin.

The Auxerre goalkeeper was helpless moments later around the 66th minute as Lyon skipper Corentin Tolisso finished coolly from Ainsley Maitland Niles low driven pass across the box.

Fonsecas charges smelled an opportunity and extended their lead just five minutes after when Tolisso switched roles delivering an early ball into the area which Yaremchuk nudged in.

Christophe Pelissier responded by making three changes when his side trailed by two and they pulled one back with two minutes left in regular time as Bryan Okoh unleashed a powerful low shot from distance that surprised Dominik Greif.

However that strike came too late to change the outcome so Lyon secured the full points bolstering their position in the top three of Ligue 1. Auxerre stay in the play off position for relegation four points adrift of safety with only three matches remaining.