But yesterday, Toulouse’s goaltending was dealt a bit of a blow yesterday when Olivier Blondel (who is underrated as a goalkeeper in my opinion), was send to Troyes on a free transfer. Blondel, who did play stellar in the few games he played for Toulouse, will help the newly promoted side move up the ladder in Ligue 2.

Blondel with be battling with French-born American Quentin Westberg for the top goaltending spot, which Blondel should easily get.

In other news, it is looking more and more like the team that is looking to pick up striker Andre-Pierre Gignac is Marseille, if Olivier Sardan wants to sell him. According to Le Depeche du Midi, Marseille are trying to work out a deal that will bring Gignac, a Marseille-area native, back to his home. Gignac has always considered playing for Marseille “a dream”, yet that dream might cost OM a pretty penny.

As of right now, all this talk might mean nothing, as we first need to see where the less expensive players, like Jimmy Briand, end up going.

In Le Depeche’s article, the paper said that Marseille were “pour trouver un remplaçant à Brandao.” Is Brandao heading out of Marseille? I highly doubt it but we shall see.

This year Ebondo caused a number of problems for Toulouse, from making horrible defensive mistakes (like being totally out of position) to offensive mistakes (intercepted pass after intercepted pass). And in a league where attacking play on the left side is more important than on the right, Albin Ebondo is the reason that Toulouse finished near the bottom of the table

Now Ebondo is moving on another team. His contract is up with Toulouse this year, and a number of teams are looking to acquire the right back. Among the teams currently being talked about are Newcastle and Cologne. There is a lot more talk about him going to Newcastle, and there was a deal in the making last year for him to go there. But this year, he will go on a free, and I think that Newcastle will be the Marseille-born right back’s choice.

Good luck Albin, we needed a new right back anyway!

First the bad news.

As many of you might know, Andre-Pierre Gignac was injured (yet again) in the Lyon match a few weeks ago, where he suffered a tear in his adductor muscle. Gignac is expected to be out of the Toulouse lineup for the next three to four weeks.

“It’s a really harsh blow but, as usual, we’re going to deal with it,” coach Alain Casanova told L’Equipe.

But, the good news. L’Equipe also said that star keeper Yohann Pele might be returning to the lineup against PSG. Pele has been practicing the last few weeks, and he returned to competition with the Toulouse reserves as they played CFA2 side Blagnac. And, of course, Pele recorded a clean sheet.

First of all, Colin Kazim-Richards has been praised by Alain Casanova, according to the official Ligue 1 site. As we have mentioned in the past week, his play has been quite good (which I didn’t expect). “I think Kazim was one of the few satisfactions in the first half against Marseille in midweek,” said Casanova.

He continued “I hesitated a long time before starting him against OM, he’s still a long way from being 100 per cent physically. But he was able to cause them problems, to take on his opposite number one-on-one and he showed what he’s capable of doing.”

Still, even with the praise, Casanova will not be going with Kazim Kazim in the starting lineup. This week’s lineup looks quite interesting. While the defensive line looks the same (Ebondo, Congre, Cette and M’Bengue), the midfield looks quite different.

For some reason, Casanova is going with Mathieu Berson instead of Etienne Capoue. Pantxi Sirieix will be starting as well, along with Luan. This leaves both Etienne Didot and Paulo Machado on the bench. Moussa Sissoko and Daniel Braaten will make up the rest of the midfield. And, of course, Andre-Pierre Gignac starts up front.

Also here are some last minute quotes from Casanova before today’s match against Lyon.

“Looking at Lyon from afar, it appears they were able to take a good hard look at themselves over the winter break, they seem to have found what wasn’t working, put their finger on it and set about trying to rectify it at the start of 2010

“I think what they’ve achieved so far in 2010 is pretty good and they’re a competitive side again capable of fighting for a Champions League place. As for the title, I think that’s going to be very difficult. But I think they have every chance of qualifying either directly or indirectly for the Champions League.

“So for us, it’s going to be a very difficult match against a side composing top quality players. But when you are a side capable of causing Marseille as any problems as we did in the second half against in midweek, we should be capable of causing a few problems to Lyon too.”

Finally, for Lyon, Claude Puel is going with Lisandro Lopez, Caeser Delgado and Bafe Gomis up front. Puel is going with Lloris in goal, and Réveillère, Cris, Boumsong, Lovren on the defensive line. In the midfield, Maxime Gonalons gets the nod and will join a returning Jean Makoun and Kim Källström

“They are a team with quality and we know it,” he said, according to www.olweb.fr.

“We saw it against Marseille in the Coupe de la Ligue. They have a great deal of physical strength and it’s hard to find fault with their defence. The squad is very competitive and this will not be a clear-cut match for us.

“I don’t think Toulouse will be hampered by having played on Wednesday either. There will be four days between the two matches, and a number of players were rested.”

Goalkeeper Hugo Lloris also added “the matches are always tough in Toulouse. They are a very competitive side with a lot of character. They defend well and attack quickly, they do not belong in 10th place in the standings.”

Things also might be worse for Lyon as well as their left-back Aly Cissokho will miss the trip due to a hamstring injury. Jeremy Toulalan is already going to miss the match because of a suspension.

Here are the teams for the upcoming match:

Lyon – Lloris, Vercoutre – Cris, Boumsong, Lovren, Réveillère, Gassama – Källström, Gonalons, Makoun, Bastos, Pjanic, Ederson – Delgado, Govou, Gomis, Tafer, Belfodil, Lisandro.

Toulouse – Loustallot Valverde – Congress, Cetto, M’Bengue, Ebondo, Nounkeu – Capua, Didot, Berson, Braaten, Sirieix, Machado, Sissoko, Kazim, Tabanou – Gignac, Luan, Dupuis.

Also, another yellow card for Mauro Cetto, Etienne Capoue or Paulo Machado will result in them missing their match next week at PSG.

The referee for this match is Antony Gautier.

While they were the losing side in the Cup match, Toulouse had the better play throughout the 90 minutes. So, even though they have been knocked out, they have a lot to look forward to. And this past lost to Marseille is Le Tef’s first loss of 2010.

But unlike the end of 2009, this 2010 team has a different look. With Mauro Cetto (the team’s captain) back and the addition of Colin Kazim-Richards to the attacking midfield, Toulouse looks to be a strong team to challenge for another trip to the Europa League.

The most noticeable change to the team has been the addition of Kazim-Richards. In his first two matches he came off the bench. But in the Cup match against Marseille, Kazim-Richards started, only to be subbed off after a knock to his leg. Still, his offensive skills have been a god-send to an offense that is struggling. And with the Lyon defense continuing to struggle, this might be exactly the right time for Toulouse to strike.

The Kazim-Richards’ addition will greatly benefit two players: Andre-Pierre Gignac and Moussa Sissoko.

While I didn’t expect Gignac to have the 24 goal performance that he did last year, he has been struggling quite a bit in Ligue 1 play. Most of that has to do with the fact that opposing defenders are double teaming him. And with a lack of other offensive options, it was easy to shut down the French international. But now with Kazim-Richards and Paulo Machado (who has really found the scoring touch in the last month) providing offensive pressure, defenders will have to respect these players more, thus leaving Gignac with more room to move around up front.

The other person that will benefit from this addition is Moussa Sissoko. So far this year, Sissoko has had to carry the offense since Gignac has been shut down. But now, like with Gignac, Sissoko will have more room to work offensively. But the biggest advantage that Sissoko will have comes on the defensive side of the ball. Since Kazim-Richards’ addition to the club, manager Alain Casanova has put Sissoko back in the defensive midfield with Etienne Capoue.

But even with these additions, can they defeat Lyon? You never know which Lyon team is going to show up. But without Jeremy Toulalan in the lineup, this is the perfect match for Kazim-Richards to introduce himself to the French football world.

Still, the main matchup that most people will be watching is the Lyon offense vs. the Toulouse defense. Will Congre, Ebondo, Cetto and M’Bengue be able to stop Lisandro Lopez? This is where Sissoko’s move back to the defending midfield might make all the difference.

Therefore, in this match, anything is possible.

But if Toulouse wins today, the win will see them to the final, where they will take on Lorient or the winner of the Bordeaux/Cedan match, which takes place today.

While Toulouse seems to be in good spirits, the same cannot be said for Marseille. After a decent start to 2010, L’OM were shocked by 2nd place Montpellier (yeah, it is weird to say that) as they lost 2-0 at the Stade de la Mosson. Therefore, we will see which Marseille team will show up.

On thing that is for certain, Steve Mandanda will not be the goaltender for Marseille. Mandanda injured his groin and will be replaced by Elinton Andrade for this cup match. And with injuries to Yoann Pele and Olivier Blondel earlier this season, both teams have to worry about letting the opposition score at will against weaker goalkeepers.

For Toulouse, the season (as we mentioned) seems to be picking up. After dealing with injuries to Andre-Pierre Gignac, Mauro Cetto and Franck Tabanou, Toulouse will be fully staffed for this match (with the exception of both goaltenders, of course). Therefore, this might be exactly the right time for Le Tef to strike at Marseille, as they are banged up and missing Mandanda.

The main story (or at least my main story) will be to see if Colin Kazim-Richards starts in this game. In the two matches he has played so far for Toulouse, he has been quite impressive. He has shown that he can play both the right and left sides of the attacking midfield quite well. In addition, Toulouse’s midfield looks to turn more into a scoring machine with each and every match. Alain Casanova has been starting Luan more in the midfield now to add a little more scoring power.

So, if Sissoko, Kazim-Richards, Capoue, Luan and Machado starts, this means that either Etienne Didot or Daneil Braaten will have to start on the bench. Still, Kazim-Richards isn’t a starter for the team, and it is still unknown if Toulouse will put in him that capacity, since he is only on loan to the team.

But if Le Tef can continue thier impressive play, their place in the League Cup final is almost certain.

The 20 for Toulouse tomorrow: Loustallot, Valverde – M. Fofana, Congré, Cetto, M’Bengue, Ebondo, Nounkeu – E. Capoue, Didot, Berson, Braaten, Sirieix, Machado, Mou. Sissoko, Tabanou – Gignac, Kazim, Luan, Dupuis.

Last year, Guingamp surprised the French football world by defeating Rennes in the French Cup final to become the first non-top tier league team to win that cup since 1959. On their way to their historic victory, Guingamp knocked Toulouse off in the quarter-finals.

There is no doubt that Toulouse will be looking for revenge against the Ligue 2 side that seems to always bring their best game to cup competitions. Toulouse midfielder Mathieu Berson said that the loss to Guingamp last year was a “big black spot” on what was otherwise a positive season.

Manager Alain Casanova also has bitter memories of that match. “It was a great disappointment indeed,” said Casanova. “We were at home against a L2 team. Guingamp had richly deserved the victory. They were much better than us that day.”

Casanova also added that he was hoping that he would have the chance to play against Guingamp and exact his ‘bitter revenge’. Still, he also insisted that this match has nothing to do with last season. But that is pretty hard to believe when you want ‘bitter revenge’. So, sorry Alain, it is about last year. And rightfully so.

Toulouse should have a large advantage in this match. They have one of the best player-per-player teams in Ligue 1. And while they haven’t looked that impressive this season, they have started off 2010 strongly. Most of the reason for Le Tef’s poor play is that opposing Ligue 1 defenses have figured out how to contain Andre-Pierre Gignac. Yet, they haven’t found a way to stop Moussa Sissoko.

In addition, new signing, Turkish international Kazim Kazim, has been named to the team. We don’t know if we will see him play, but we will be keeping an eye out on him.

Still, Toulouse find a way to always screw up cup matches. Remember, this is the same Ligue 1 club that lost a French Cup match to Paris FC (who is actually my favorite team) by a score or 2-1 at the Stade Municipal a few years ago.

After a decent start to 2010, a strong win and a spot in the semifinals could finally turn this team’s fortunes around. Toulouse hasn’t won a cup since the team was re-founded in 1970. Still, here is an old video clip of their French Cup win in 1957.

Gignac has signed a contract extension with Toulouse until 2013. But if the team gets an offer they can’t refuse, Sadran somewhat indicated that he would listen. “If we receive an offer and all parties are in agreement, we will advise,” said Sadran according to L’Equipe. In addition, Sadran feels that the current economic situation (in football worldwide I assume) continues to be poor, that the summer transfer window will be quiet.

In addition to answering the Gignac rumors, Sadran stated that he would like to see the Coupe de la Ligue eliminated. “I’m for the abolition of the League Cup as it overrides the calendar. The Cup of France has a historical legitimacy, the League Cup does not,” said Sadran according to L’Equipe.

Currently, Toulouse is alive in both of the cup competitions. Toulouse takes on defending League Cup champions Guingamp on January 26th.