Dominant Lyon learn to win the hard way

Olympique Lyon's 1-0 extra-time win over Paris St Germain in Saturday's French Cup final provided a fitting symbol for their season, the toughest in years but also the most successful for the country's top side.

PSG, who narrowly avoided relegation from the top flight, hit the woodwork twice and had a goal disallowed for offside before Sidney Govou struck on 102 minutes to secure Lyon a first League and Cup double.

"When you sum up our season you realise that, even when we suffer, we end up winning trophies," Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas told reporters after the match.

"Maybe PSG would have deserved to win the game but if you look at what we have achieved, this has been our best season," added Aulas, the chairman of a software company who turned Lyon from a mediocre provincial side into a merciless winning machine.

A week earlier, Lyon had sealed a record seventh successive league title, which they did not run away with for a change, having to wait until the final round of matches to fend off a brave challenge from second-placed Bordeaux.

Now they have also won the Cup, a trophy they had been chasing since lifting it for the third time 35 years ago.

What the future holds for this year's squad remains unclear.

France goalkeeper Gregory Coupet, who has been linked with a move to English club Tottenham Hotspur, confirmed he had played his last match for a club he represented for more than a decade.

Another player likely to leave is 20-year-old France forward Hatem Ben Arfa, whom Olympique Marseille have expressed an interest in.

Playmaker Ederson will join from Ligue 1 rivals Nice, while the Brazilian's team-mate Hugo Lloris, a goalkeeper, is also a target.

The best news for the Lyon fans is that France striker Karim Benzema, who has scored 33 goals in all competitions this season, has said he would definitely be staying.

There is still a question mark over the future of coach Alain Perrin, who struggled in his first season in charge to win acceptance from his players and a clear endorsement from Aulas.

"I have reached my goals," Perrin said after Saturday's match. "What happens next is out of my hands."

Lyon's biggest challenge next season will be to make an impact in Europe after never advancing past the quarter-finals of the Champions League and falling to eventual winners Manchester United in the first knockout round this year.

"We have an idea of what we need to do to keep growing," Aulas said without elaborating.