Lens 2-1 Olympique Lyonnais: Match Report, Goals, Stats and Ratings
Ligue 1 Matchday 6 · Friday 9 October 2026 · Stade Bollaert-Delelis, Lens · referee J. Stinat · full time
Full time: Lens 2-1 Olympique Lyonnais
Lens won 2-1 at home to Olympique Lyonnais in Ligue 1 Matchday 6 on Friday 9 October 2026. The goals: Florian Sotoca 36', Matthieu Udol 76', Khalis Merah 85'. It went against Moneyball's pre-match estimate.
How Lens won it
The opening goal came in the 36th minute: Florian Sotoca for Lens, set up by Florian Thauvin. Matthieu Udol made it 2-0 to Lens in the 76th minute, set up by Florian Thauvin. Khalis Merah made it 2-1 to Olympique Lyonnais in the 85th minute.
It was 1-0 at half-time.
Matthieu Udol of Lens was sent off in the 84th minute. The referee, J. Stinat, showed 2 yellow cards: 1 to Lens and 1 to Olympique Lyonnais.
Lens: Y. Cahuzac, 3-4-2-1 · Olympique Lyonnais: P. Rodrigues Fonseca, 4-3-3.
Moneyball's prediction against the result
A miss for the model: 48% for an Olympique Lyonnais win, 28% for a Lens win, and football chose the second.
On goals the estimate was close: about 3.2 expected, 3 scored.
Over 2.5 goals had been put at 61%; with 3 goals the over came in, as the estimate leaned.
Both teams to score was 63%; both did, in line with the estimate.
Computed before kick-off from both sides' season goals and expected goals as of 2026-10-09, through a Dixon-Coles score model, and left as it was.
Why it went this way
On the day the expected goals were 1.27 for Lens and 1.46 for Olympique Lyonnais.
Lens had 7 shots on target, Olympique Lyonnais 5.
Olympique Lyonnais's goalkeeper made 5 saves.
Olympique Lyonnais had 52% of the ball, but Lens took the points.
A red card changed the shape of the match, and no pre-match model can see one coming.
Where the two sides stood before this match
Lens came into it with 6 Ligue 1 matches played, scoring 1.8 and conceding 1.7 a match, with 1.98 expected goals for and 1.81 against, and had won 33% of their matches.
Olympique Lyonnais came into it with 6 Ligue 1 matches played, scoring 1.8 and conceding 0.7 a match, with 1.80 expected goals for and 1.08 against, and had won 50% of their matches.
Lens vs Olympique Lyonnais: the match in numbers
| Lens | Match statistics | Olympique Lyonnais |
|---|---|---|
| 48% | Ball possession | 52% |
| 1.27 | Expected goals (xG) | 1.46 |
| 15 | Total shots | 13 |
| 7 | Shots on target | 5 |
| 2 | Big chances | 1 |
| 454 | Total passes | 488 |
| 85% | Pass accuracy | 85% |
| 7 | Corners | 4 |
| 13 | Fouls | 12 |
| 1 | Offsides | 1 |
| 20 | Tackles | 10 |
| 4 | Saves | 5 |
| 1 | Yellow cards | 1 |
| 1 | Red cards | 0 |
Team statistics from Sportmonks.
Player ratings and man of the match
Man of the match: Florian Thauvin (Lens), rated 8.9 by Sportmonks, with 2 assists.
Lens
- Florian Thauvin 8.9 2 assists
- Florian Sotoca 7.9 1 goal
- Ruben Aguilar 7.4
- Matthieu Udol 7.4 1 goal
- Ismaëlo Ganiou 7.2
Olympique Lyonnais
- Khalis Merah 7.5 1 goal
- Dominik Greif 7.2
- Zachary Christopher Athekame 7.0
- Tyler Morton 6.9
- Kaïl Boudache 6.8
The lowest-rated starter was Abner at 6.3. Ratings run from 0 to 10; around 7.0 is a solid match.
What comes next
- Lens: Troyes vs Lens Saturday 17 October 2026 · Ligue 1
- Olympique Lyonnais: Olympique Lyonnais vs Nice Sunday 18 October 2026 · Ligue 1
Each preview has Moneyball's estimate for the next match, published before kick-off and marked against the result afterwards, as this one is.
Questions about Lens vs Olympique Lyonnais
What was the score in Lens vs Olympique Lyonnais?
Lens 2-1 Olympique Lyonnais (half-time 1-0), Ligue 1, Friday 9 October 2026.
Who scored in Lens vs Olympique Lyonnais?
Florian Sotoca 36', Matthieu Udol 76', Khalis Merah 85'.
Did Moneyball predict Lens vs Olympique Lyonnais correctly?
A miss for the model: 48% for an Olympique Lyonnais win, 28% for a Lens win, and football chose the second.
Who was man of the match in Lens vs Olympique Lyonnais?
Florian Thauvin, rated 8.9 by Sportmonks.
Who refereed Lens vs Olympique Lyonnais?
J. Stinat.
Every match, before and after
Moneyball Odds writes a preview with its estimate before every match of Europe's top five leagues and the European cups, then marks it against the result, hits and misses alike.
Moneyball Odds is a statistical analysis site, not a bookmaker. No model predicts football reliably. For readers aged 18 and over.