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Lyon Have Freshened Up & Are Ready For Ligue 1 Run-In – Ederson OL’s bright young Brazilian has declared that Claude Puel’s men are ready to shrug off the opposition as they head into the final stretch of the Ligue 1 season with a one point lead in Le Championnat. 4 Apr 2009 07:10:23 Photo GalleryZoom Champions League : Ederson (Lyon) vs Xavi (Barcelona) Related Links Teams Olympique Lyonnais Players Ederson In any recent Ligue 1 season, Olympique Lyonnais would know with some degree of certainty with nine games remaining that they would win the title and, at worst, finish in the top two. Not so this term as their dominance of the French crown is under severe threat as five other clubs are within four points of les Gones. Despite the close-run nature of Le Championnat this term, Ederson is confident that OL can pull away and extend their record run to eight trophies in succession. Prior to the international break, Lyon had been on something of a slump, only coming out of it as they defeated Sochaux 2-0 at the Stade Gerland. The diminutive Brazilian attacking midfielder has declared that the truce has done his side good and that they are ready to attack the final nine games of the season with renewed gusto. “After playing seven matches in 21 days this break has done us a lot of good both mentally and physically,” he is quoted as saying by Ligue 1’s official website. “It allowed me time for my ankle to heal. We've worked well as a group and stored up energy for the sprint to the line.” Lyon actually tumbled down to third in Ligue 1 prior to their success against les Lionceaux a fortnight ago as Girondins de Bordeaux and Olympique de Marseille both played earlier in the weekend than them. Claude Puel’s men will be involved in the main body of games this weekend and Ederson has targeted three points. “To be champions we have to win all of our games, starting with Le Mans on Saturday,” he explained. “It won't be easy because they need points to stay in the league.” Although he is being cast as Juninho’s long-term successor in midfield, Ederson has been used as a centre-forward of late due to the crippling shortage of players capable of playing in such a role at Lyon. However, he insists he is confident playing in the alien position. “I felt good in this position,” said the player, who has found the net five times in Ligue 1 this season. “I'm available to play there again if that's what the coach wants. I’ve spoken a lot with former strikers Bernard Lacombe [special advisor to president Jean-Michel Aulas] and [coach] Sonny Anderson, who gave me good advice. I've changed the way I strike the ball. I always used to try to place it, now I give it more of a whack; it’s what the coach asked me to do as well and it's starting to pay off.” Lyon have to travel to Le Mans on Saturday evening where they will be seeking an improvement on last season’s 1-0 loss to MUC at the Stade Leon-Bollee. Robin Bairner, Goal.com