Remi Garde has paid tribute to his Lyon side following their last-gasp victory in the Derby du Rhone against Saint-Etienne on Sunday.

Jimmy Briand headed the winner with the final touch of the match to give Les Gones a 2-1 win at Stade Geoffroy-Guichard after Romain Hamouma had cancelled out Alexandre Lacazette's opener.

"It was great; it was difficult, but these derbies are such special matches that I felt the lads really had the desire to pull something off," Garde told reporters. "Even though the match could have gone the other way - they hit the crossbar - it went in our favour, and I hope we can turn this result into a run.

"Our confidence is returning and we've made it back into the top half of the table. The second half was pretty tough for us because Saint-Etienne pushed very hard. It was much more physical than academic, and we suffered after their goal. But we kept believing and it paid off, which is superb for the team.

"We have a different frame of mind now; the players feel it and have said as much. You enjoy things more when everyone's pulling together."

Lyon are now up to seventh in Ligue 1 following the win.