- Debutant Sears shines as US women rally to beat Iceland
- Sainz achieves wish with one more win for Ferrari
- Japan PM under pressure after debacle election
- Timothee Chalamet crashes his own look-alike contest
- McLaren say Verstappen penalties 'not enough' after 'ridiculous' Mexico move
- Eight-try Toulouse flatten Toulon to go top of Top 14
- Ohtani expected to play in World Series game three after injury scare: Roberts
- Centre-left opposition leads in Lithuania election
- Sainz wins Mexico Grand Prix as Norris makes most of Verstappen penalty
- Trump leads New York rally as Harris targets grassroots
- Centre-lift opposition leads in Lithuania election
- Injured Springbok Willemse to miss November Tests
- NFL Browns upset Ravens while Tagovailoa loses in comeback
- Yildiz saves Juve in eight-goal thriller at Inter as Napoli pull away
- Bolivia's ex-president blames govt as shots fired at him
- Japan ruling coalition projected to lose majority in election
- Yildiz drags Juve back from brink in eight-goal thriller at Inter
- Ford added to England squad for New Zealand clash
- Faltering Atletico stumble again at Real Betis
- Ohtani to play World Series game three after injury scare - report
- In uncertain US election, two prestige papers refuse to pick sides
- England's Slade eager to face New Zealand after Exeter return
- 'Venom' still kills, topping N.American box office
- Conservatives top Bulgarian elections but fall short of majority
- Liverpool hold Arsenal in Premier League title clash, Man Utd beaten
- Chelsea's Palmer reminds Maresca of Blues favourite Zola
- Bayern thump Bochum to retake Bundesliga top spot
- Salah strikes late as Liverpool snatch draw at title rivals Arsenal
- Georgia opposition calls election results protests as president accuses Russia
- Egypt proposes two-day Gaza truce in hope of full ceasefire
- Ex-president of Bolivia blames government as shots fired at him
- Beaten Man Utd only lacking good fortune, claims Ten Hag
- Postecoglou says Spurs out-battled in Crystal Palace loss
- EU urges Georgia vote probe as ex-president calls for mass protests
- Malinin wins Skate Canada for North American Grand Prix double
- Mpetshi Perricard powers to 'amazing' first ATP 500 title in Basel
- Bayern thump Bochum to retake top spot
- West Ham pile more pressure on Ten Hag, Palmer fires Chelsea to victory
- Balotelli set for Italy return with injury-hit strugglers Genoa
- Japan ruling coalition projected to miss majority in election
- Netanyahu declares Iran strike a success as Israel pounds Lebanon, Gaza
- Draper holds off Khachanov for first ATP 500 title in Vienna
- Left seeks to unseat conservative in Uruguay president vote
- 'Failing' Judge vows to dig Yankees out of World Series hole
- Leon Marchand savours break from post-Olympics glare
- Ex-president of Bolivia says 14 shots fired at his car
- Netanyahu hails 'precise' strike on Iran as Israel pounds Lebanon, Gaza
- Steen Olsen wins World Cup opener as Hirscher wows on comeback
- Georgia thrown into political turmoil after disputed vote
- Japan ruling party projected to miss majority in election
Lyon eye route into Europe after remarkable revival
Lyon's transformation from relegation contenders in Ligue 1 just a few months ago has been so remarkable that they head into the final weeks of this season with two paths to European qualification still open.
Champions League semi-finalists as recently as 2020, the seven-time French champions were rock bottom of Ligue 1 in early December with a paltry seven points from 14 games.
That was just after Pierre Sage, the head of the club's youth academy, had been named interim coach following the sacking of Fabio Grosso, whose own reign lasted only seven matches.
The 44-year-old Sage, who never played at a high level and had never previously coached a senior team, lost his first two matches at the helm.
The turnaround since then has been quite astonishing, with Lyon winning 10, drawing one and losing three of their last 14 games, collecting more points than any other club in the division in that time.
Now Lyon head into Sunday's home meeting with Brest in 10th place in the table, relegation no longer a concern as they lie 12 points clear of the bottom three with six games left.
In contrast, they are only two points adrift of seventh, which will be enough to qualify for next season's UEFA Conference League should Paris Saint-Germain win the French Cup.
PSG's opponents in the French Cup final, which will be played in Lille on May 25, are Lyon, who therefore still have a chance of claiming a first trophy since 2012 as well as a Europa League spot via that route.
Their resurgence has justified the club's decision to stick with Sage, even if that has meant paying a fine of 25,000 euros ($26,814) per game as he does not have the necessary coaching badges -- he will do a course to obtain his qualifications at the end of the season.
"We are still hoping to climb a few places and finish as high up the table as possible," said 17-goal top scorer Alexandre Lacazette after last week's 3-1 win at Nantes.
"We have six great matches and lots of points still to play for."
They must nevertheless be wary this weekend of a Brest side who have upset the odds this season and currently sit second.
The Britany club have never previously finished higher than eighth but a victory in Lyon would be a big step towards them securing a top-four spot and a place in next season's Champions League.
Player to watch: Andrey Santos
The 19-year-old Brazilian midfielder is a symbol of the link between Chelsea and Strasbourg, with the latter having been taken over last year by BlueCo, the US consortium which also owns the London club.
Santos was bought by Chelsea in January last year from Vasco da Gama in his homeland, and was loaned out to Nottingham Forest in the first half of this season.
After only two appearances there, he was sent to Strasbourg in the January window and has made a promising start in Alsace under Patrick Vieira, completing 90 minutes in each of their last three games.
Santos is a long way from the finished article, but he is nevertheless a promising talent with a potentially huge future.
Key stats
7 - The number of points Lyon collected in their first 14 matches this season
31 - The number of points Lyon have collected in their subsequence 14 league matches
6 - Only six Ligue 1 matches will be played this weekend, with the matches involving PSG, Marseille and Lille all postponed until April 24 to help them prepare for European ties next week
Fixtures (all times GMT)
Friday
Metz v Lens (1900)
Saturday
Strasbourg v Reims (1500), Rennes v Toulouse (1900)
Sunday
Le Havre v Nantes (1100), Clermont v Montpellier (1300), Lyon v Brest (1845)
D.Kaufman--AMWN