Lyon owner Jonathan Textor is reportedly eyeing up an ambitious move to bring Premier League Crystal Palace forward Jean-Phillipe Mateta to the French club this summer. The move, as reported by Alan Nixon would certainly be a controversial one.
As well as owning the Ligue 1 side, American Textor is also a shareholder in Palace. Although he is planning to sell his stake it would no doubt provoke a very bad reaction from Eagles fans should he sell a key player.
Given his current form, Palace will no doubt be anticipating interest in Mateta when the summer transfer window opens, but are expected to demand a £50 million fee. Whether this would be possible for Lyon remains to be seen.
Why do Lyon want Mateta?
Meta initially arrived in South London on loan from Bundesliga side Mainz in 2020. He scored once in seven games. After making the move permanent, he began to establish himself in the side in late 2021.
His appearances have increased every season, with 2023-24 proving to be a real breakout season for the Frenchman, where he only missed three league games and scored 16 goals. Overall he netted 19 times in 39 games.
This season, he has netted 10 goals in the Premier League, including six in the last five games. After scoring against Chelsea and Leicester, he netted a brace against West Ham and Manchester United.
Who is Jonathan Textor?
Textor is an American businessman who became known in the film industry after buying Digital Domain, a virtual effects company, from James Cameron in 2006. His work has led to him becoming known as Hollywood’s ‘Virtual Reality Guru’.
Previously he had invested in action sports, but became involved in football in 2021 when he bought a 40% stake in Crystal Palace for £86 million. He has been a vocal critic of UEFA’s FFP and the Premier League’s PSR rules.
In 2022 he invested in Lyon, buying the majority stake previously held by Jean-Michel Aulas. It was reported by the Financial Times that Textor’s stake was 77.49%. He also owns stakes in clubs in Brazil and Belgium through Eagle Sports Investments.
Aren’t Lyon in financial trouble?
In November the DNCG, who oversee the finances of football clubs in France, handed Lyon a provisional relegation from Ligue 1 as their debt was found to have risen from €458 million to €508 million.
The Ligue de Football Professional (LFP), the governing body for Ligue 1, also confirmed that Lyon would be subject to a transfer ban and have their accounts monitored. At the time, Textor was bullish about Lyon’s chances of avoiding relegation.
Considering their perilous financial position, whether or not Lyon could even afford the £50 million that Palace would reportedly be demanding for Mateta seems highly doubtful given they may need to sell players to balance the books.
How are both sides performing this season?
Crystal Palace suffered a nightmare start to the season, failing to win any of their first eight games of the season. Their first win did not come until 27 October when they beat Tottenham Hotspur 1-0 at Selhurst Park.
They have managed to turn their form around since then and have taken 14 points from their last seven games seeing them climb to 12th in the table. Their points tally is now closer to the European places than the relegation zone.
At the time they were provisionally handed relegation, Lyon were fifth in Ligue 1. They go into today’s home match with Reims in eighth, seven points off the Champions League places. However, they are on a four match winless run. Finishing in a European place could be crucial considering their current situation.