Lyon owner John Textor comes out fighting - as he defiantly says 'we will NOT be relegated' - despite authorities ruling French side will be demoted to Ligue 2 if they don't improve their finances

Lyon owner John Textor is insistent that the French giants will not lose their top-flight status over over financial issues.

The seven-time Ligue 1 champions will be relegated to the second tier at the end of the season unless their situation improves in the eyes of French football's financial watchdog.

It would mark another hammer blow for the game in France after Bordeaux were demoted to the fourth tier due to bankruptcy this summer. Lyon recently announced debts of £422million and have now been banned from signing players amid a looming possible relegation, according to reports in France.

But on Saturday, Textor, whose sprawling multi-club portfolio includes Brazilian side Botafogo as well as a significant share in Crystal Palace , came out swinging and defiantly defended the French side's position.

A big point of contention for the American is DNCG's - the authority responsible for overseeing the accounts of professional clubs in France - decision to only appraise the finances of Lyon, rather than all of the outfits in his Eagle Football Holdings.

'At the DNCG, there are intelligent people but they work in a system and do not want to look at the global scale of what we do.' He told reporters in attendance at the specially organised two hour press conference.

'The DNCG has to digest a lot of figures in a very short time. We are a large organisation, and it is important to realise that all our clubs contribute. Our services collaborate, our financial services collaborate.'

In September Textor moved to accelerate the sale of his 45 per cent stake in Palace to enable him to launch a bid to purchase Everton. His attempt was ultimately unsuccessful but the billionaire believes that the 'imminent' sale of these assets could alone cover 'more than what Lyon needs'.

'We will not be relegated, there is no chance,' he added. 'I know that our situation makes some sceptics. I prefer the Premier League system which punishes clubs differently. We have resources that go well beyond the club. Even if we fail on all our global initiatives, of €700 million, our owners will not let the group sink. There is no chance of being relegated.'

Following the imposition the DNCG's sanctions on Friday, French journalist Romain Molina claimed that 'all Lyon players are on sale' in a bid to reduce the club's debts.

Many former Premier League stars call Lyon home. Their squad boasts Wilfried Zaha, Alexandre Lacazette, Nemanja Matic, Said Benrahma, Ainsley Maitland-Niles, and Jordan Veretout.

Other highly rated European stars such as Anthony Lopes, Corentin Tolisso, Rayan Cherki, Gift Orban, and Georges Mikautadze are also on their books.

Textor briefly addressed their position with respect to their playing staff and strategy in the January transfer window, claiming that boss Pierre Sage has 'almost impossible decisions to make'.

'We have an excess of superb players.' He said. 'The coach has almost impossible decisions to make. I hate rumors about which players to sell, it depends on the opportunities, the certainty is the abundance of players.'

Les Gones have been hemorrhaging money year-on-year and their financial model is based on consistent Champions League qualification.

However, they have not been in Europe's elite competition since the 2019-20 season, when a side inspired by Memphis Depay and Bruno Guimaraes reached the semi-finals.

The Eagle Football Group portfolio owns stakes in Lyon, Palace, Botafogo of Brazil, FC Florida, and RWD Molenbeek in Belgium.

Lyon's situation is not unique. Many clubs in France are struggling off the back of the Covid-19 pandemic and drastically decreasing TV rights revenue.

France's LFP (equivalent to the EFL) had hoped to sell their TV rights for around £835m for the 2024-2029 period.

However, nobody matched that price. In the end, DAZN paid around £344m, with BeIN Sports lumping in £84m - meaning the LFP barely gained half the funding they wanted, and an 11 per cent drop on the 2021-2024 period.

There are bonuses that the LFP can earn if its matches perform well on the airwaves - but there are also break clauses alongside that which could see funding withdrawn.