Lyon move to quash Puel claim

Lyon have strongly denied a report in France suggesting they are planning to part company with coach Claude Puel.

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Lyon have strongly denied a report in France suggesting they are planning to part company with coach Claude Puel.

Les Gones found themselves in the Ligue 1 relegation zone after seven games but have since recovered to sit third in the standings, just two points behind leaders Lille.

That has not stopped a sport website speculating over Puel's future, claiming former AC Milan coach Leonardo was being lined up as a summer replacement, but the club moved quickly to quash such talk.

"Olympique Lyonnais denies strongly information published today by Le 10 Sport on the future of Claude Puel at Lyon," read a statement on the club's website.

"The club would like a little more serenity from the media for the next two games in this very important end to the first half of the season that has seen the club back among the title candidates and qualify for the eighth consecutive time for the last 16 of the Champions League."

Meanwhile, Jurgen Klopp, the Borussia Dortmund manager, claimed Sevilla resorted to "embarrassing" tactics to knock the Bundesliga leaders out of the Europa League on Wednesday night.

The game ended 2-2, which meant Sevilla went through as Group J runners-up while Dortmund were eliminated.

Klopp was livid at the way the Primera Division side had wasted time as the match wore on. "There is a bitter aftertaste to this defeat," he said in a television interview.

"It was an embarrassing display from Sevilla. For such a great team to resort to such tactics is an embarrassment.

"I don't want my team to learn something like wasting time."

Even the ballboys contributed to the time wasting by first refusing to give the ball back to Dortmund players and then sending extra balls onto the field to cause further delays.