Juninho trademark sees off Sedan

Juninho Pernambucano scored a sublime free-kick two minutes from time to send Olympique Lyonnais into the Coupe de France final against Paris Saint-Germain FC later this month.

Long wait
Twenty-four hours after PSG overcame Amiens SC, Lyon also found the going tough against Ligue 2 opposition. Sedan were by no means overawed against their top-flight hosts and fashioned some promising opportunities of their own, while Lyon found Sedan goalkeeper Patrick Régnault in inspired form until Juninho's set-piece rendered him helpless. Lyon's final appearance on 24 May at the Stade de France will be their first in this competition since a 2-0 loss to Olympique de Marseille in 1975/76, while Les Gones have not lifted the trophy since 1973.

'Lucky'
"I was lucky tonight," said Juninho. "The French Cup is something the club has expected for a long time. I hope we can deliver a great game to PSG, a side used to great cup games." The lineup for the final also means the fifth-place finishers in Ligue 1 are likely to qualify for the UEFA Cup due to PSG's League Cup final victory in March.