Cumbrians sign O'Hanlon

Fri, 11 Jan 2013 17:28:00

Troyes midfielder Mounir Obbadi expects high-flying Lyon to be fully motivated for Saturday's Ligue 1 clash at the Stade de l'Aube following their Coupe de France defeat.

Lyon, who lie second in the overall league standings behind Paris St Germain on goal difference, lost out on penalties to third-tier Epinal last Sunday and will fancy their chances against second-bottom Troyes.

Obbadi knows Lyon fans will be expecting a big reaction from their team against his side, who only have two wins to show from their first 19 games, following their cup exit and thinks they will be under more pressure as a result.

"These are two different competitions and Lyon are still in the Europa League," Obbadi told estac.fr.

"Now we can actually expect them to be highly motivated. For us, it does not change much. We need points and we must put in our hand all of the necessary ingredients to win.

"Of course it will be difficult, but we have nothing to lose. The pressure is more on them."

Troyes were beaten 4-1 by Lyon in August last year and with the need to secure points all the more pressing now following the winter break, Obbadi denies there is a special winning formula.

"There is no recipe," Obbadi said. "It is especially important to win the maximum number of matches. That's it!

"Otherwise, it will be complicated. But we do not give up, as nothing has been decided mathematically with relegation."

Lyon coach Remi Garde does not think his side's elimination from the cup competition will affect them on their return to league action.

He said: "The week was marked pretty heavily by our elimination. We know what we have to do.

"The players are facing up to their responsibilities, as they have been since the beginning of the season.

"We missed out on qualifying, but it shouldn't throw us off. Did I raise my voice? Perhaps. I didn't really feel like congratulating the players, nor myself.

"I wasn't happy but anger is a sign of weakness. I have many ways of trying to get the best out of the squad; the rod isn't the only one."

O'Hanlon was released by the Scottish Premier League side in August and the 30-year-old has been training with the Cumbrians since December.

Boss Greg Abbott told the club's official website: "We invited Sean along just before Christmas and he has enjoyed himself with us.

"He knows some of the lads anyway and he has fitted in well. We've seen a lot of him and we're delighted that we've been able to bring him in.

"He's a big, strong player who has a lot of experience and games under his belt. We're really looking forward to working with him."

O'Hanlon began his career at Everton but made a permanent switch to Swindon, following a successful loan spell at the County Ground, when he was released by the Toffees in 2004. He played over 100 games for the Robins before signing for MK Dons in 2006.

A move to Hibernian followed five good years in Milton Keynes and he teamed up with Carlisle at the end of last year having been made a free agent by the Edinburgh-based club.