#farid benstiti

[redwineconversation]

Wendie Renard OL Feminin Contract Extension Interview (September 2, 2024)

I'll save the fucking van de Donk nutcase stans the time and say Renard does not talk about van de Donk in this interview. For the life of me I do not understand frothing at the mouth over a player to the point of inserting yourself into conversations between two individuals you don't even know. To paraphrase Kamala Harris and Tim Walz, it's weird and creepy. So for the love of god please step outside, take a nice long deep breath of fresh air, and contemplate being a normal person who doesn't stalk football players. I refuse to believe it is that much of an ask.

I could write entire dissertations on why Renard is my favorite Bad Catholic such a good captain. I also find the dynamics between Renard and Lyon players, past and present, absolutely fascinating. It's cool! It's interesting! And you get it by watching them play instead of stalking them on social media! Renard is the only person in the world who can look at Hegerberg and say "don't" and Hegerberg backs down immediately. How can you not find that cool and interesting? Lyon, the story of a dynasty built by a ruthless tyrant and her loyal mercenary only to be destroyed by academy players.

Blah blah standard disclaimers apply; as the song goes this heat wave IS freaking me out @OL Comms pls save me and my AC bill; the way some of you refuse to practice basic social etiquette honestly concerns me; y'all know the speech by now.

Interview was posted on Youtube but I am still transcribing it because what is love if not avoiding doing the dishes self-loathing?

WENDIE RENARD CONTRACT EXTENSION INTERVIEW

Renard: "I feel good. After, my contract wasn't ending either. The decision to extend for one year was made for various reasons which will stay between the club and myself because that's the way it is. We keep things confidential even if the ownership has changed. I know what this club has given me. I know where I've come from. Beyond that, the ambition is still there, it's to remain at the highest level and at the top. So the adventure will continue for one more year. It will have been 21 [years.]"

Renard: "This is home. The balance has shifted. I left Martinique at 16, I'm going to be 34, the balance has tipped. It's even reversed. Beyond that, I've already said it, I'm the person that I am because of the values my parents have taught me. I'm someone who is very thankful. It's why there have been a lot of discussions with the club for a while. I've always been honest and open with them. And the objective was - in any case, I know that for me I know where I came from. I know it wasn't easy and that if it hadn't been for my first coach, Farid Benstiti who said yes to taking a chance on me, I would be in Martinique and I wouldn't be sitting here in front of you. So yeah, it's a good story. But obviously there were others. I met others who were exceptional people, people who work here, President Jean-Michel Aulas, practically his entire team, even staff, players who have left. We created a real connection, it's a family. I'm far from my family myself. There is more than 8,000 km. So at a certain point when you arrive and you find a new family here, it allows you to develop even more as a player and to grow even more."

Renard: "There was a new owner coming in, we didn't know her ambitions, we didn't know what her expectations were for the women's team. We heard a lot of things in the press about us. So there was bit of unease. Then after having talked with the new boss [Michele Kang], she put forth the project she wanted for us. She's an inspirational woman, she's someone who wants to give women a chance in various domains. So it's important. It's important. Beyond that, the project is long-term. I don't think I will be a part of it as a player. It's important for me as a player to keep that identity of always wanting to win, to always show the values this club has. So that's also why the contract extension happened."

Renard: 'Even if the ownership changed, we have a new boss, it's important for me to keep the [Lyon] DNA. It's that DNA which has allowed us to win this many titles, no matter the players on the field, no matter the staff. I've shared a lot on the field with a lot of players. So for me it's important to continue. Beyond that, I'm more towards the end [of my career] than the beginning. I'm also in a transition phase with the new generation coming up, even if I have always done that. But beyond that - well, the adventure continues. And we mainly have to win titles."

Renard: "I hear a lot of things about myself, when they talk about Lyon they also talk about me. But it's not me - I didn't make Olympique Lyonnais Feminin. We already had a president, I know I said this before, but he was someone who really believed in us since 2004 when he merged the women's section with what was FC Lyon at the time. So the story started back then. Then there were different generations, different players who left a mark for this club. I'm still here, I can't leave. [laughs] But it also shows my consistency in terms of me as a person. I've always been someone who has talked about the team because I play a team sport. It shows my consistency. I think that it's been like that for while. It's still a business, it's become a real business. You have to perform well because results are expected of us. If I wasn't performing well I wouldn't be sitting here in front of you today."

Renard: "No, like I said, it's nice to have extended. As I said, there are a lot of projects coming up in the upcoming years, as much for the new generation and making them understand, well, it's not just because we're at Lyon and that we have won this many titles, that doesn't matter. What matters is what we have to go win. You have to throw yourself into it, you have to fight. You have to work hard because it's not handed to you. You don't win just because."

Renard: "I don't forget my role as a player either. As I said, you have to perform well because that's the only way you will get the respect from your teammates, and everyone's respect. But I've always been - even when I arrived here when I was really young - I learned from others. I've always been someone who watched, who observed. Because as I learned from older players when I was starting out, it's become natural both in my role with the team, I became captain under Patrice Lair. Obviously that allowed me to grow as a person, as a player and especially as a woman. So it became natural for me. And I also think it's logical. As I said to the younger players, if I can help you grow up 2-3 years, that's non-negotiable."

Renard: "We often talk about the highs but there have also been some defeats which really, really hurt. But in any case Lyon's achievements, like I said, many, many players have come through Lyon, a lot of staff. We didn't do it by ourselves, we did it together. You need the team as a whole to win. The season is very long. There are highs and lows in a season. We've seen that the last few years. Injuries, a lot of things can happen. It's really important everyone stays focused on the objectives we fix for ourselves at the beginning of the season because - and I keep repeating myself - that's what we work for. And at the end, when you started from zero and you manage to win trophies, well you can only be happy and satisfied."

Renard: "Yes, it's become harder and harder. But we've wanted that for a while. But it's become harder and harder because the teams are becoming stronger especially in terms of the staff, the physical preparation. Before - and I'm thinking of a few games - by the 60th, maybe 70th minute we were really overpowering the other team. But today they can hold their own. Women's football has progressed, it has really moved forwarded. It's good news for the future. It's all we want. And that's why individually as well you have to do everything to change shall we say the "method of working" as an individual because while we do the team work together, we can't just rely on the practice sessions at the club anymore. It's that simple. There are so many demands [on your body] around the sport that you have to do everything possible to be ready physically for whatever challenge you face."

Renard: "In any case you always remember what happened in the past, especially when it hurt. The past can make you come back even stronger. But then, even when it's going well, there's always things to change. But you're experiencing euphoria so you're savoring it. But there's always something to change because from one season to the next, well, it's not the same thing. The intensity grows. And for me as an athlete, I've always aimed high, I've always set the bar high in terms of expectations. First for myself, I'm someone who is very demanding of myself. For me it's really important to keep that, it's something that you need to improve on a daily basis. There's always areas, you're always learning no matter your age. Sometimes I hear "well at a certain age-" No. You're always learning no matter your age. Because - well once again, we have a new coach, new staff. So this year I am going to be learning a lot [mainly how much the academy kids suck] because the expectations are different, they might ask things of us which are different from previous years [like letting fucking academy kids play competitive games]. So you learn no matter your age. It requires a lot of self-reflection, it requires a lot of analysis from my part. From everyone as well. But in any case I am someone who is very demanding so I try to put myself in the best position to perform individually and then the team follows the example."

Renard: "I find it really interesting, the fact that there is a structure really focused on taking care of women's bodies. Because once again all the studies, everything that was done in the past, was done on men. Of course even at the time I think it helped, for me personally it really helped because when I arrived here, well, Patrice [Lair, former head coach] was doing everything like with the men. Now I was young so it was okay, but today, with all the years that have gone past, you say to yourself maybe there were things that we did that have consequences on our bodies now. So to have structures which are really focused on development, on research, focused on women, on things like our periods and the affects those have on injuries, shoes, analysis, etc. I think that's really informative. And me, I - I'm really eager to see what happens next because she [Michele Kang] is really someone who wants to given women the opportunity in various domains and we'll see what happens next. For the moment I think it's more the board who is in charge of the project. There's the academy project, wanting to have our own pitch, wanting to have a facility just for us. I don't think there are a lot like that in the world. I don't there are a lot of presidents who would do that, even if we couldn't complain here because President Aulas wanted to give us the opportunities as the men. And we have the same opportunities as the men. So those are things which are in the continuity of women's football."

Renard: "Yeah, it's Michele [Kang]'s project. We can see it in any case with her desire to have several clubs on various continents. So, yeah. It's a project. It's her own project. But in any case today at Olympique Lyonnais, I think what we need to is maintain the high standards on an individual and collective level to win titles but especially compete for titles. We have to win. We have to win and I think - last year we won one title out of three [won French league; lost UWCL final; lost Coupe de France semi-final]. It's - it's a review. We won some titles, but I think we could have won others. Now, it's like I said earlier, you have to ask yourself the right questions regarding the defeats we've had and why we didn't win the titles: "Why?" "What was missing?" So many questions. Obviously it's up to the technical staff as well, but also there is a new staff who came in. So some questions will be different. But I think as a player, you have to analyze what happened in the UWCL final, why didn't we win? Those are all things we need to do in order to move forward and come back stronger. Why not win more titles this year?"

[incorrectnwsl]

Allie Long: Thank you, sir.

Farid Benstiti: Don't call me "sir".

Allie: Thank you, ma'am.

Farid:

[horanimal-10]

Ok I did NOT have this on my July NWSL Chaos bingo card but you know what? I'm not mad.

Yesssssssss 🙌🏼

[that-soccer-guru]

Problematic or not, what Lindsey talked about in Cari and Ginny's podcast was something that should never happen to any player (or woman) and i'm glad she's is talking about it so other players that are going through the same thing know they're not alone.

what really gets me is that people think she's being a crybaby about this? Like.... she was a kid, far from home, doing her best to thrive in a professional environment, in a team that wasn't shaming her because her weight was affecting her performance (it wasn't) but because she didn't fit a "look" they wanted her to have??? Benstiti can bite my ass and you may quote me on that. Reign hiring that fucker to be their coach is, to date, the worst decision I've seen them make and that says a lot.

Yes, I don't support Lindsey Horan in many things, but her personal choice and problematic white privilege shit aside, no one—I repeat—NO ONE should have to go through that kind of anguish. A professional soccer player should NOT be bullied into starving themselves to fit a look. A human being should not be forced to harm themselves to fit a look.

She's not the first or the last professional soccer player asked to drop a few pounds, as a lot of bro types are fond of pointing out and from what I can remember, Eden Hazard, Ronaldo, Edwin Cardona, and a handful of other men were asked by their teams to drop a few pounds. But that was on question of their fitness and performance. That wasn't Lindsey Horan. She was putting out great numbers and doing her job and they bullied her into unhealthy eating habits because they wanted to parade her as the ideal look of a PSG player. That is garbage. Fuck Benstiti, fuck the coaching staff, literally absolutely fuck all of that noise.

If anyone who follows me is suffering from an eating disorder please PLEASE know you're not alone. You shouldn't punish yourself and your body for a stupid ideal, and if you're going through that I'm sorry, I'm here if you need it.

[itsmaddienotmaddy]

Not Kaylyn Kyle bringing up when a coach told Lindsey to drop weight while said coach is LITERALLY chilling on the sidelines

[kryptamazon]

NWSL

I stopped following the NWSL this summer because I was too (self-)absorbed in learning to draw. Checked news for the first time in months and JESUS FUCKING CHRIST how many head coaches have been fired since the (new? new?!) anti-harrassment policy was implemented? I am, sadly, not surprised that there’s a problem, but my god:

Alyse LaHue (Gotham) (edit: general manager, not head coach)

Farid Benstiti (Reign)

Christy Holly (Louisville) (for cause, but possibly not bc of abuse)

Richie Burke (Spirit), and the team’s owners are suspended from league governance meetings.

Paul Riley (Courage) (for an 11+ year history of sexual coercion)

And the league’s Commissioner and its General Counsel both resigned and/or were fired on Friday. They were made aware by a former player, immediately after the anti-abuse policy was implemented in April, of Paul Riley’s record and of the investigation of him conducted by the Thorns in 2015 (which resulted in the Thorns firing him but only announcing that they were parting ways amicably!), and took no action.

This weekend’s matches were suspended (as they fucking better have been). The NWSL’s press release says "We have made this decision in collaboration with our players association”, but they should have had the humility and courage to state the truth, which is that it was made at the request of the players association.

I don’t even know what to say. I feel like I want to tear the whole NWSL down with my bare hands - which leads me to hope that players won’t lose their livelihoods because of damage to the league.

Riley has had his coaching license suspended by USSF. I hope USSF makes that permanent, and I hope they don’t stop with him.

[once-upon-a-womens-soccer]

Sophia’s built like a tank. She needs to drop weight if she wants to succeed at this level.

What the fuck... Is this Farid Benstiti?

[pleaserelaxfc]

Mid-week Matches: Week 19.5

I do these write-ups mostly for myself, and I don't think there's many people who even see them, but it would still feel inappropriate to start this week's without first discussing what happened in the league last week. While I have summarized what happened below, if anyone is reading this and hasn't already heard about what has happened, please please go read the original reporting at the Athletic (and if the main article is paywalled, I think I have a couple of guest passes that I can send along if you DM me), as well as follow up reporting at any number of sources - the Washington Post and the New York Times among them.

What has been allowed to happen in the league over many, many years is horrifying. The ways in which teams have protected abusers by getting them out of their immediate environment, while keeping quiet about the reasons why, enabled those abusers to perpetuate their abuse elsewhere in the same league. This is particularly galling in a league where players, who are so often the victims, have so little power - in addition to making very little money, they also have practically no power over their own careers, in terms of moving away from a team where they are either being subjected to abuse or where they could be subject to retaliation if they report on it. It's appalling that it happened in the first place, and it is appalling that so many people with the power to impose consequences simply let it slide.

On Thursday, the Athletic reported that Paul Riley, then the coach of the North Carolina Courage and who had coached for many years in the NWSL and predecessor leagues, had coerced players into having sex with him, had sexually harassed players, had made homophobic and more generally abusive comments towards his players, and had otherwise abused his position of authority routinely over the years. Additionally, the Portland Thorns had been made aware of at least some of the accusations against him when he was the head coach there, had investigated him, and found that there was no evidence of illegal behavior but that he had violated team policy - they sent the NWSL the results of their investigation and released Riley from his position, but did not publicly announce the reasons for doing so, and most NWSL outsiders believed it was due to poor results for the season. Riley was promptly hired by the Western New York Flash, which later became the Courage - the article does not discuss whether the League made any effort to preclude the Flash from making the hire in the first place, whether the Flash ownership had been made aware of Riley's behavior, either by the League or through their own background checks, and what (if any) information the Courage obtained when their purchase of the franchise was effected, but given the existence of the Thorns' report, it seems unlikely that any of the parties were entirely unaware. Several hours after the article was published, the Courage announced that they had fired Riley.

The Athletic's article had reported that earlier this year, when the League implemented an anti-harassment policy for the first time, at least one of the players who had been subjected to some of Riley's worst behavior and who had been involved in the report at the Thorns, Sinead Farrelly, had emailed the League to see whether an investigation had been opened under the new policy, and noting that she had been subject to additional behavior that she had not had the opportunity to discuss at the time. At the time, she received a response that the Thorns investigation was concluded and would not be reopened. However, when the Courage announced Riley's firing, the League released a statement suggesting they were shocked to hear of these allegations and had worked with the Courage to get Riley out. In response to the implication that the League had not been aware of Riley's behavior, Alex Morgan published screenshots of the email exchanges between Farrelly and the League, which rebut any assertion that the League had not been aware (or at least, had not had ample cause and opportunity to make themselves aware) of the abuse. On Friday evening, the Lisa Baird, the Commissioner of the NWSL, as well as Lisa Levine, general counsel of the NWSL, who had been with the League at the time of the Thorns report, resigned following a general outcry at all levels.

On Thursday night, the NWSL Player's Association, which is currently in negotiations regarding a collective bargaining agreement, asked the NWSL to cancel last weekend's games. I'm not sure whether they would have been able to organize a strike if the NWSL had refused - national team players at least are barred from striking in the league - but the NWSL agreed, and those games have been postponed.

Now, for this week - three games will be played on Wednesday, which would have brought all the teams up to 20 games played (originally 21, before last weekend's postponements), except that the Gotham-KC game had to be rescheduled since the minor league baseball team that KC shares its field with made the playoffs and needed the field on the originally-scheduled date.

As things stand:

The Portland Thorns (38 pts) are still at the top of the table, but OL Reign (35) is starting to close in on them a little as well as to separate themselves from the rest of the table, with six points between the Reign and the two teams tied for third place.

On that note, the North Carolina Courage (29) seems to have dropped into the mid-table grouping, which otherwise hasn't changed much - the Chicago Red Stars (29) and the Orlando Pride (28) are still slightly above the Washington Spirit (26), the Houston Dash (26), and NY/NJ Gotham FC (25), with the Dash (based on tiebreaks) and Gotham currently outside playoff position, but games in hand for the lower-positioned teams mean that practically anything can happen within this group.

As of last weekend, KC (11) is officially out of the running for a playoff berth, and while Louisville (17) could technically still pull it off, they are now three full games behind playoff position with only five games remaining in their season.

Current Points/Max Potential:*

Thorns: 38/53

Reign: 35/47

Courage: 29/44

Red Stars: 29/41

Pride: 28/40

Spirit: 26/41

Dash: 26/41

Gotham: 25/43

Louisville: 17/32

KC: 11/26

Potential* end of season, based on overall performance to date:

Top Two: Thorns (48), Reign (42)

Middle Four: Courage (37), Red Stars (35), Pride (34), Gotham (33)

Out of the Playoffs: Dash (33), Spirit (33), Louisville (21), KC (14)

Change from last week: The Red Stars and the Pride have swapped places, but they have been keeping close together for the last several weeks. Otherwise, only the specific numbers have changed.

Potential* end of season, based on recent trends:

Top Two: Thorns (47), Reign (45)

Middle Four: Red Stars (36), Courage (34), Dash (34), Pride (34),

Out of the Playoffs: Spirit (33), Gotham (30), Louisville (18), KC (15)

Change from last week: The exact ordering of the teams in the middle four has been changed, and the expectations for the six teams vying for those four spots have tightened significantly.

Games to be played this Wednesday:

Gotham - Spirit (7:00, CBS Sports)

Courage - Louisville (7:30, Paramount+)

Thorns - Dash (10:00, Paramount+)

Mid-week notes:

First and foremost, Paul Riley of the North Carolina Courage was fired, and the NWSL's commissioner and general counsel both resigned.

It is also now official that Richie Burke of the Washington Spirit has been fired. He is also banned from working with NWSL players in the future. Additionally, the League found that the Spirit did not act in the best interests of the League, and their ownership has been indefinitely suspended from participating in matters of league governance, and has been sent a notice of violation to respond to within fourteen days. (As a side note, I think the Spirit's suspension from League governance is particularly interesting in the context of this week's ousters. I don't think the outcome would have changed, but I do wonder how it would have changed conversations, inside and outside the room.)

In response to a letter from the Spirit players, Steve Baldwin stepped down from his role as CEO and managing partner of the Spirit, leaving Ben Olsen as the head of the organization. This did not sufficiently address the concerns expressed by the players, and they have published an open letter to him, demanding that he sell his interest in the team to Michele Kang.

In connection with the reporting on Paul Riley, it was also revealed (or, confirmed) that Farid Benstiti, who was let go by OL Reign earlier this season, was also "asked to resign" as a result of abusive comments towards players - the Reign had not made that information public until now (although there was widespread speculation due to the fact that he had a history of abusive comments towards players at PSG when he coached there), and, like Riley with the Thorns in 2015, his departure came at a time when the team was significantly underperforming expectations, and could reasonably have been attributed to that.

In happier news, KC has come to an agreement with Sporting Kansas City to use Children's Mercy Park for their regular season games in 2022 - one fewer baseball field!

Notes on the week:

KC have been officially eliminated from playoff contention - with their loss to the Spirit in September, the maximum number of points they could get fell to 26, and with five teams already above that and the two additional teams tied at that number having another game to play between them, there is no way that the playoff threshold will be below 27.

With KC officially eliminated, bottom of the table playoff watch now turns to Louisville - they are already guaranteed to finish behind the Thorns and the Reign. A loss or a draw for Louisville on Wednesday against the Courage would also guarantee that Louisville finishes behind the Courage (in the event of a draw, the Courage has the tiebreak), and a loss for Louisville combined with a win for the Dash would guarantee Louisville to finish behind the Dash at least on tiebreaks (barring a very strange situation with more than two teams in the tiebreak) - while a Louisville loss combined with a Spirit win would also mean Louisville could at best end up tied for points with them, the head-to-head tiebreaker between them is currently even, with one more game to play.

The Thorns were not able to pull off a win against Chicago to officially guarantee themselves a spot in the playoffs in September, but the opportunity is still available to them this week: with a win over the Dash, they would earn 41 points, which is more than is possible for KC, Louisville, or the Pride to achieve, a loss would put the Dash below that threshold as well.

It is again possible that we could have a many-way tie at the end of the week, depending on the results of the various games, this time at 29 points: If the Spirit, Louisville, and the Dash all win, then the Spirit, the Dash, the Courage, and Chicago will all be on 29 points.

I think the Spirit-Gotham game will be the most interesting one of the week, and I'm not just saying that because they are my two favorite teams - it should be the most competitive of the three, and since both teams are on the bubble for the playoffs, the outcome could be important. Assuming last weekend's games do get rescheduled, my guess is that the cutoff for the playoffs will be around 33 points, so the Spirit need at least two wins and a draw in their remaining five games (three wins would get them to 35 points, which will almost certainly be safe), and Gotham need three wins out of their remaining six games. With two games against Louisville and one against KC remaining, in addition to one each against the Pride and the Courage, this is probably not a must-win for Gotham (although a win would probably put them in fairly comfortable position for the playoffs, and they will want a result just to maintain some momentum coming off of their first win in eight games); for the Spirit, with two of their five games being against the Courage and the Reign, and the other two against Louisville and the Dash, this isn't a must-win per se for the Spirit either, but it's much closer for them than for Gotham, and they will at least want to pick up a point here. Another factor of interest is the previous game between the two: Sam Staab got very controversially red-carded less than ten minutes into their only other meeting of the season, and while Washington kept it close, Gotham ultimately won 3-2. The League overturned the red card after the game, but there was nothing to be done about the result for the team, which was surely impacted - the Spirit will be looking for a win here if for no other reason than to make up for their previous (undeserved) defeat.

The Courage-Louisville game looks a little more straightforward on paper - Louisville is one of the bottom two teams in the league, and the Courage were very comfortably in the top two until very recently. However, although Louisville is on a seven-game winless streak of their own, the Courage have only scored once in their last four games (resulting in two draws and two losses), which is extremely unusual. Using the same 33-point threshold, the Courage only need a win and a draw in five games, and with only one of those five coming against a top-two team, they can afford to drop points here, but it will certainly be one of their easier opportunities, and a loss (or even a draw) will give other bubble teams a bit of confidence.

The Thorns will also be expected to win fairly handily over the Dash, although a loss in their last game against Chicago have them looking mortal again, and the Dash can come up with some unexpected results when their players are on top of their game. This isn't really a must-win for the Dash (although last weekend's rescheduled game against KC would have been), but they do have a fairly challenging schedule going forward, with this game and another against the Thorns, as well as one against the Courage in between, and they will need to pick up at least one point from the three - and that's assuming they can win outright in their other two games, against KC and the Spirit.

*These are potentials based on, respectively, taking all remaining points available (assuming last weekend's postponed gamed get rescheduled), matching their points-per-game ratio for the season to date through their remaining games, or on matching their points-per-game ratio for the last five games through the remaining games - they don't take into account tiebreaks or what the actual remainder of the season looks like.

[redwineconversation]

Shirley Cruz Le Progrès Article (August 22, 2023)

Much more willing to translate something as a favor when people are nice and respectful :)

Blah blah standard disclaimers apply, Pumpkin Spice Lattes are back and so is my desperation for OL Comms to chip in for my addiction, y'all know the speech by now.

Olympique Lyonnais: Shirley Cruz, the most French Costa Rican

The former Lyon defensive midfielder, who played a part in the club's first European titles, retired from professional football in early 2023, after more than 15 years at the highest level. At Lyon, the Costa Rican "Shishi" was part of the first foreign players to play in the French league.

"This isn't amateur football over here!" Shirley Cruz exclaims, who dropped by Décines [Lyon] at the end of July to visit the Lyon Feminin training grounds. Replaying her memories of her Lyon experiences, which ended 11 years earlier on the field at Garland [Lyon's former stadium grounds].

It's on the pitch in Tola Volga that the "small" 20-year-old Costa Rican arrived, in December 2005, to try out with Olympique Lyonnais. "It was my first experience with the cold, it was hard, hard," jokes the 37-year-old former defensive midfielder, a black jacket with a white neckline around her neck. One of the core members of this initial Lyon team and their first European trophies, in 2011 and 2012.

Having left her paradise in Central America for a European experience, "Shishi" left the noisy neighborhood in San Jose, where she lives with her parents, four brothers and two sisters, for the quietness of Lyon.

In tandem with her French lessons, perfected with her teammate Elodie Thomas, Shirley Cruz adapted little by little to her new environment.

"Beyond the winter [season], I discovered that the mountains could be something other than green. I also experienced pollen and allergies," laughed the former No. 11 Lyon player, who only knew "dry season and rainy season" in her native country.

A 3-week try-put which lasted 6 years

After a one-month probationary period and a game against Montpellier, the head coach at the time, Farid Benstiti, decided to keep her as part of the team. "What was supposed to be 3 weeks last six years," Cruz summarized, who was found at Lyon a new family with Sonia Bompastor, Camille Abily, Louisa Necib, Lara Dickenmann, Elodie Thomis, Lotta Schelin, Sabrina Viguier and others.

"We were kids who wanted to win titles and become the best footballers in the world. Aulas allowed us to do that by giving us the means so our dreams could become a reality," the Lyon player says, who retired from football back in January after almost 15 years at the top level. Of which six years were spent in the club's rival in the French capital, where she had followed Farid Benstiti.

"I didn't know anything about French football or European football at the start. I remember finding out on the fly that we would qualify for the Champions League by finishing first in the league, that was a nice surprise. Even if the first year was brutal," "Shishi" recalls fondly.

Remembering the Final lost against Germany's Postdam in Getafe (Spain) in 2010, after a penalty shootout which started well with Lyon having a two-penalty lead over their opponents. "The lack of experience, certainly. After that, it didn't happen again," the retired international player explains. Who is conscious about having "accomplished something big with Lyon by walking the halls of the Lyon museum, where she found her certification as a professional player hanging on the wall.

A good reminder for her who wanted to always wanted to represent Costa Rica. And who left her mark in France.

"With the girls, we went skiing in the mountains even though that wasn't allowed"

"My parents didn't know anything about football, I still have to explain the offside rule to them"

"I'm not from a sporting family. My mom was a stay at home mom and my father was a customs officer. They didn't know anything about football. Even today I have to explain what the offside rule is. But it wasn't all bad, they let me do my own thing, unlike certain parents who push their kids and get a big head over their performances. I learned to play football with my older brother and his friends. He is ten years older than me, when we were younger he had to take care of everyone, we followed him everywhere. Having played with boys until I was 13, and then with girls who were twice my age, it helped me grow physically and mentally."

"At Lyon, I could have even played as a centerback"

At Lyon, I started as a defensive midfielder to fill in for an injured player, and I stayed in that position. I was pretty technical, and was in charge of clearing the ball. Here [at Lyon], I learned how to play with my back to goal, to take more risks and push forward. I was surrounded by Camille (Abily), Sonia (Bompastor), Lotta (Schelin), Lara (Dickenmann), Thomas, Louisa Necib, players who knew how to play with the ball, so it was simple. At the time, I could have even played as a center back under those conditions.

"Sonia (Bompastor) left a mark on me, she yelled at me a lot"

"Sonia (Bompastor) is the player who left the biggest mark on me because she yelled at me quite a lot (laughter): she's a fierce competitor, she wants to win more than anything so she makes that known to you on the field. It worked out for me after, at PSG. Over there, it was me who was playing Sonia's role (laughter).

"We went skiing even though that wasn't allowed"

"When I came to Lyon, we had to train with our own clothes. The very next year, everything was paid for. In this team, no one was above anyone else, we were very united. We had a lot of fun during training sessions, we spent a lot of time together off the field as well. We even went to the mountains to go skiing even though that wasn't allowed. We couldn't make a mistake because we had to play a game afterwards..."

[incorrectnwsl]

Megan Rapinoe: I totally respect your decision, but I've already made my own decision.

Farid Benstiti: That's the complete opposite of respecting my decision.

[whydoiwrite]

Did a coach call Lindsey fat?? Or is this anon tripping

Farid Benstiti told her she needed to lose weight and that she would be benched until she did. That it was about her appearance and not how her weight impacted her playing.

[olplus]

Farid Benstiti démissionne de son poste d’entraineur principal d’OL Reign (Le Progrès : https://olplus.fr/ffFmW)

[reborn-from-your-ashes]

Farid Benstiti coaching the Reign FC isn't a good news... It's well known how bad he can be. He's not an extraordinary coach and he doesn't have a good reputations with his past players.

It's such a shame that most of the people coaching in the women's football world aren't made for it. You can often hear bad things about them. But luckily, they aren't all like that. Let's just see how it goes.

[rookieforlife]

The anon with the French clubs insight was really helpful and interesting! That makes a lot of sense and something I didn't know. Can that anon further explain and/or list some examples of the unreasonable restrictions placed on players? Thank you for letting us have this discussion

No problem! I think Lindsey Horan and the relationship with her former coach, Farid Benstiti (now OL Reing’s coach) is a good example. But if the anon wants to tell us more, I’m gonna post the messages.

[gaywoso]

Reign FC have agreed to terms with Frenchman Farid Benstiti to become the team’s new head coach, multiple sources have confirmed to The Equalizer. Benstiti is expected to sign with the club before Thursday’s National Women’s Soccer League College Draft.

Benstiti emerged as the head coach of choice for the Tacoma, Washington-based team after a process which included conversations with over a dozen candidates from Europe and the United States.

Reign FC has been without a coach since late October, when Vlatko Andonovski left to become the United States women’s national team coach. A Reign FC official did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

Benstiti was manager of Olympique Lyonnais’ women’s team from 2001-2010, before the team’s modern, dominant era in Europe. Lyon lost in penalty kicks in the UEFA Champions League final in Benstiti’s final season in charge. Benstiti, who turns 53 next week, also played for Lyon in the 1980s.

The OL Groupe, which owns Lyon, recently purchased an 89.5% share of Reign FC.

Benstiti has been manager of Chinese women’s club Dalian Quanjian since 2017, twice winning the Chinese Women’s Super League title. He arrived in China after four years managing Paris Saint-Germain, who finished runners-up to Lyon in France’s top flight each year he was in charge.

Benstiti was also head coach of Russia’s women’s national team in 2011 and 2012, as well as head coach of Russian club Rossiyanka in 2012, when a trio of American players briefly signed there before leaving the club over contract disputes with ownership. Benstiti stayed less than a year before also leaving the club to coach PSG.

Several disturbing incidents around Rossiyanka were previously reported, but individuals with direct knowledge of the situation stated the issues stemmed from the club’s ownership and not Benstiti, who was well-regarded among the players.

[redwineconversation]

Lotta Schelin Le Progrès Article (September 28, 2022)

Disclaimer: I am uncomfortable with the idea of translating every Le Progres article that comes out about Lyon, but I'm also a sucker for a good love story. I think that really to understand the Lyon of today, you have to understand their history, which is rich, complex, and kind of cool.

Lotta Schelin, OL's first "Queen"

Delighted by her new role as mother and consultant for Swedish television [sports] shows, the former Lyonnais center forward, third best scorer in the history of club, has a lot to say about OL. The love of her life with whom she stayed with for eight years.

At Lyon, the 1m79 former center forward who scored 225 goals in as many matches left her mark. Having left Lyon in 2016 after having spent eight years at the club, her suitcase filled with trophies (8 league titles; 5 Coupe de France titles, 3 Champions League titles), the third best goalscorer at OL came very close to not having been part of a story in women's football.

In summer 2008, without a phone call from Farid Benstiti [former OL coach], who noticed the Swede's composure in front of goal at the Pekin Olympic Games, Lotta Schelin probably would have gone to the United States, where she was being severely courted. Wanting to see something other than the Damallsvenskan (top women's division in Sweden), the Göteborg FC player (105 goals in 134 matches from 2001 to 2008) was convinced by the speech of the ambitious Lyonnais coach. And she left for France, where she knew "absolutely nothing."

"No one understood my choice at the time. In Sweden, we had a lot of stars and the French league wasn't known. Everyone thought "okay, she doesn't want to give herself the means to become a top player." I told myself I would stay one or two years max at Lyon. But after a year and a half at the club, we found ourselves in the Champions League final (2010). We won it the following year. And I found myself in the best club in Europe, maybe even the world. It's impossible to leave after that," tells the mother of an 3-year-old boy from the other end of the phone, in perfect French.

A departure synonym with transfer of power

For her "good integration" within Olympique Lyonnais, Schelin put an emphasis on learning "the local language", helped at the time by the "very patient" Sandrine Brétigny and Sandrine Dusang [former OL players].

On the field, despite her hat trick scored against Vendenheim, where she scored her first [hat trick] in D1 on September 14, 2008, the former player of Göteborg FC took some time to get used to the French style of player. "I wasn't as technical as Louisa Necib [former No. 10 player before Marozsan]. Me, I was focused more on speed, I was making calls, I wanted the ball played deep and we often put in at my feet. It threw me off a bit," remembers the 38-year-old Nordic, living in Kungsbacka, a sea town with a population of 100,000 people, 30 km south of Göteborg. She nonetheless works as a consultant for Swedish television shows (she covered the Women's Euros this past summer and will follow the World Cup in Qatar in November from the studios based in Stockholm).

"My club, it's not Göteborg, it's Olympique Lyonnais"

Plagued by injuries and a little less prolific in her last season with Lyon in 2015-2016, the best player in D1 (2012-2013) and top goalscorer in the league (2012-2013 and 2014-2015) already made her choice in 2016. To return to her country and be closer to her family. "It was the perfect moment for me. To leave place for Ada (Hegerberg), as well. It's funny because the supporters nicknamed us "Queen Lotta" and "Princess Ada" but since then, she has taken over the throne," jokes Schelin.

Conscious of having "been a part of the history of club," she says she "keeps Lyon in her heart." "Lyon also showed me a lot of respect. That, it's not something you feel everywhere. My club, it's not Göteborg, it's always going to be Lyon." Will she come back one day? "Honestly? Why not!"

"I loved playing with Camille Abily, she placed the ball perfectly"

A little too altruistic

"In Sweden, we think of others before anything else. I was always used to that. It's a good thing to be altruistic but in terms of being an attacker, you can't be too altruistic either. I remember that Antonin da Fonseca would often tell me: "turn, shoot, score, don't look to see if you have someone [on your team] around you, take responsibility as a striker"."

Leaving OL in style

"My last game with Lyon, it was that Champions League final against Wolfsburg, May 26, 2016. I don't remember having played a great game but what was most important for me, it was having taken part in it. I received a knock above the knee a few days prior. During training that eve, I was able to do several sprints, that reassured me but up to the last moment I was afraid I wasn't going to play. I started as a substitute, I came in 25 minutes before the end. We won on penalties after extra time. I took a penalty. It was stressful because Ada (Hegerberg) had missed hers. When I took the ball, I told myself: "okay, I can't end it like this." And when Saki (Kumagai) scored hers, we exploded with joy then. It was a dream to finish my story with Lyon like that."

Impressed by Necib's technique and Renard's longevity

"The players who stood out for me? Lara Dickenmann, Shirley Cruz ... Those two girls were wonderful. I loved playing with Camille Abily as well. She was right behind me and would pass the ball perfectly. Louisa Necib, as well, she was a fantastic player, with a technique that was out of this world. Wendie [Renard], I've known since she was very young. To have seen what she has done all these years at Lyon, it's crazy, she's one of the best players in the world.

A double scored at Gerland

"I remember one game in particular with OL. It was in 2011, in the Champions League semi-final against Arsenal (April 9, return leg). We played in Gerland in front of 20,000 people, it was sold out, the sun was shining. We won 2-0, I scored the two goals, in the same same way: on the left side, by opening by foot towards the far post. I think I have never been happy in that way before, because in a way I contributed to the qualification for the final ... that we would go on to win."