New Lyon coach pleased with convincing start

New Olympique Lyon coach Alain Perrin liked what he saw in his first match in charge of the French champions, who kicked off their campaign for a seventh successive Ligue 1 title with a 2-0 home win over Auxerre.

"We got the result we wanted and we got it in style," Perrin, who took over from Gerard Houllier, told reporters about Sunday's victory.

"We created a lot of chances and did not let our opponents get many," he added.

Some Lyon fans feared their team would be weaker after losing several important players, notably winger Florent Malouda to Chelsea, defender Eric Abidal to Barcelona and midfielder Tiago to Juventus.

They were soon reassured, however, with a goal in each half by Czech forward Milan Baros and France striker Karim Benzema as well as a promising debut from midfielder Kader Keita.

"Everybody could see that we're still a force to be reckoned with," said Remy Vercoutre, deputising in the Lyon goal for France keeper Gregory Coupet, who underwent knee surgery yesterday and will be sidelined for four months.

Auxerre coach Jean Fernandez, whose team were outplayed, said Lyon looked even stronger than last season.

"We have to wait and see if they can keep it up but I thought they looked technically better, played faster and created more chances," he said.

"I have to say I was impressed."

Zippy midfielder Keita, who joined from Lille, thrilled the Gerland crowd with exciting moves and received a standing ovation when he was substituted in the second half.

"The pressure is always there because we want to win all our matches," said Perrin.

"We proved we were still around. I'm pleased with the team, especially with the fact that we didn't allow Auxerre to create too many chances.

"With the quality we have, we know we can create openings and score," he added.

"The most important thing is not to concede any goals."

Metz, back in the top flight after winning the Ligue 2 title last season, lost 1-0 at Le Mans in their opening match of the campaign earlier on Sunday.

Serbia defender Marko Basa headed home the only goal of the match in the first half.

Olympique Marseille, regarded by many as the team with the best chance of ending Lyon's supremacy, started in disappointing fashion on Saturday with a 0-0 draw at promoted Racing Strasbourg.