Cup kings Bordeaux still hungry

On Saturday morning, Carlos 'Henrique' Dos Santos Souza was a promising young defender making steady progress at FC Girondins de Bordeaux. By the evening, he was a hero in the city and beyond after scoring the only goal of the 2007 French League Cup final.

Towering header
Bordeaux made sure of a UEFA Cup spot for next season with their 1-0 victory against perennial champions Olympique Lyonnais in Paris. With two minutes to play in normal time, Henrique rose highest to meet a Johan Micoud corner, propelling the ball into the net and himself into Bordeaux folklore. "It was a fantastic goal and a fantastic moment for the team," the 23-year-old said. His celebration was memorable as well, as the Brazilian ran headlong around the Stade de France taking the acclaim from any team-mate that could catch him.

Brazilian flavour
Chief among the celebrants were his compatriots Jussiê, Fernando Menegazzo and Geraldo Mauricio Wendel, who were all brought to France by Brazilian coach Ricardo Gomes. Henrique arrived at the Stade Chaban-Delmas from CR Flamengo in August 2005, having impressed Ricardo while playing for him alongside Wendel in the country's Olympic team. The enigmatic coach was delighted with his team’s performance against a Lyon side who dominated in a manner befitting a side on course for a sixth straight Ligue 1 title. "We are not good enough to impose our way of playing on Lyon but in a final, anything is possible," he said. "We proved it."

Rising force
For all of Ricardo's humility, Bordeaux are a force to be reckoned with. A second-placed finish last season took the club into the UEFA Champions League group stage for the first time since 2000/01 and they have now won their first trophy since 2002, when they achieved their maiden League Cup success after shoot-out defeats in 1997 and 1998. Lyon certainly have plenty of respect for their rivals, with coach Gérard Houllier saying "they did what they had to to to win” while forward Florent Malouda added: "The best team on the field did not win, but we must congratulate Bordeaux."

European ambitions
Although a UEFA Cup place is already in the bag, Bordeaux are aiming for a UEFA Champions League return. They sit third in Ligue 1 but are more concerned with the chasing pack; 12th-placed FC Lorient are only four points behind Bordeaux, which is why the evergreen Micoud is so pleased with their Saturday success. "It lessens the pressure for the end of the league," the playmaker said, although anyone thinking the club will settle should take the view from the top. "[The UEFA Champions League] is the season's main target," reminded president Jean-Louis Triaud, even before the cup celebrations had died down.