Lyon’s win left their opponents bottom and them at the top after Montpellier slipped up.
Garde said: “To be top gives us great pleasure. We are going to savour it. We have worked hard for this since the start of the season, even if we are still a long way from the finish line. We had a tough start to the season, having to deal with the Champions League playoffs. Today we are very happy. It has been a good week.”