Garde's men face Ligue 1's bottom side Ajaccio on Sunday, and he insists that failure to win is not an option.
"This match [on Sunday] will be crucial for our race towards the top of the table. Everyone knows that," Garde told BT Sport. "We have to have self-esteem, bounce back. We cannot fail twice."
Lyon are sixth in the league table.
Restore Data
| Team | P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | PTS | |
| 1 | Paris Saint-GermainPSG | 16 | 12 | 4 | 0 | 44 | 14 | 30 | 40 |
| 2 | Marseille | 16 | 10 | 3 | 3 | 37 | 19 | 18 | 33 |
| 3 | MonacoMonaco | 16 | 9 | 3 | 4 | 26 | 16 | 10 | 30 |
| 4 | Lille | 16 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 26 | 16 | 10 | 28 |
| 5 | Lyon | 16 | 8 | 4 | 4 | 28 | 20 | 8 | 28 |
| 6 | Nice | 16 | 7 | 6 | 3 | 31 | 21 | 10 | 27 |
| 7 | Lens | 16 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 19 | 15 | 4 | 24 |
| 8 | Toulouse | 16 | 7 | 3 | 6 | 18 | 17 | 1 | 24 |
| 9 | Auxerre | 16 | 6 | 3 | 7 | 24 | 26 | -2 | 21 |
| 10 | StrasbourgStrasbourg | 16 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 28 | 28 | 0 | 20 |
| 11 | Reims | 16 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 21 | 21 | 0 | 20 |
| 12 | Brest | 16 | 6 | 1 | 9 | 24 | 29 | -5 | 19 |
| 13 | Rennes | 16 | 5 | 2 | 9 | 22 | 23 | -1 | 17 |
| 14 | Angers | 16 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 16 | 26 | -10 | 16 |
| 15 | Saint-EtienneSt Etienne | 16 | 5 | 1 | 10 | 15 | 35 | -20 | 16 |
| 16 | NantesNantes | 16 | 3 | 6 | 7 | 18 | 25 | -7 | 15 |
| 17 | Le HavreLe Havre | 16 | 4 | 0 | 12 | 12 | 34 | -22 | 12 |
| 18 | Montpellier HSCMontpellier | 16 | 2 | 3 | 11 | 15 | 39 | -24 | 9 |
| > Ligue 1 Full Table | |||||||||
