Olympique Lyonnais yesterday announced the immediate departure of head coach Jean-Luc Vasseur. The Frenchman leaves the club after two years at the hilt and five trophies under his belt.

In a surprise statement, the Division 1 Feminine champions confirmed that Vasseur had parted ways with the French outfit through mutual agreement. Sonia Bompastor will step in as his replacement, and will serve until June 2023.

Lyon's general manager Vincent Ponsot spoke in a press conference yesterday about the decision to bring in Bompastor as Vasseur's usurper.

"I am very happy with the appointment of Sonia Bompastor," he said. "The players were informed this morning. They welcomed Sonia. She ticks all the boxes. She has the DNA of the club."

The change in personnel comes after Lyon were ejected from the Champions League at the hands of D1 rivals Paris Saint-Germain. This will be the first time in six years that the French giants will not lift the European trophy. Lyon's fall from grace has lit up the competition – the battle for the title is simply unmissable without Lyon's dominant presence.

Whilst it came as a global shock to see Lyon out of the Champions League in the quarter-finals, the team isn't just struggling on the European stage. Their spark in the league has also dimmed and they currently trail to PSG, who are yet to lose a single match so far this campaign.

The Parisians top the table with 49 points, whilst Lyon push to play catch up on 48. The OL side have won 16 of their 17 league games played – they dropped points only to the team proving to be their Achilles heel this season. PSG snubbed their rivals of a result back in November, scraping a 1-0 win thanks to a tenth minute Marie-Antoinette Katoto goal.

Losing out on a Champions League title is one thing, but if PSG break Lyon's astonishing 14-season winning streak in D1, it will surely hint at the start of the team's rapid decline. For Bompastor, a huge task lies ahead. Interestingly, the 40-year-old played for both Lyon and PSG during her career as a midfielder, so many will be keen to see what she can accomplish at the OL Training Centre.

Whilst a one-point deficit is far from a domestic nightmare, it's definitely not what Lyon are used to. The drastic decision to part ways with Vasseur could've been a desperate measure taken to save face and ensure they remain the biggest fish in France.