Endrick ignites Lyon’s push for Champions League after blistering start | OneFootball

Endrick’s six-month loan from Real Madrid has lit up Lyon’s Champions League push, capped by a hat-trick in the 5-2 win over FC Metz. As reported by Get French Football News, the 19-year-old has made an instant mark in three games.

He needed only 42 minutes on his Coupe de France debut to score the winner in the 2-1 defeat of Lille OSC. He then set up Abner Vinícius in the 2-1 over Stade Brestois, before his first career hat-trick in Sunday’s dismantling of Metz.

After the Metz win, Endrick said joining Lyon was no mistake and reflected on a life that has never been easy. Lyon head coach Paulo Fonseca described him as a different kind of striker and expects him to improve with minutes.

Lyon had been criticised for a blunt attack after selling Georges Mikautadze to Villarreal, while Martín Satriano scored three in 19 before a loan to Getafe. Endrick has broadened their threat, from a poacher’s finish at Lille to a dink, pace in behind and a penalty against Metz.

They chase a ninth straight win on Thursday against PAOK FC in the UEFA Europa League, a tie Endrick cannot play due to ineligibility.

In Ligue 1 they sit fourth, four points clear of Lille, a berth leading to the third qualifying round of next season’s UEFA Champions League. With Olympique de Marseille two points ahead in third and 15 games left, the six-year absence could end. On a short-term loan to find minutes before this summer’s FIFA World Cup, he may prove decisive.

If he departs having secured that return and its financial rewards, his six months could be pivotal for a club still battling the financial strain that left them close to relegation last summer.

Source: Get French Football News