UEFA Champions League
Lyon vs Manchester City Preview
Groupama Stadium, Lyon – Manchester City are not home and dry quite yet in Group F as they face a tough test at Lyon on Tuesday night in the Champions League.
Lyon shocked City in Manchester on matchday 1 of the group stages with a 2-1 win, though Pep Guardiola’s side have since recovered with three straight wins to sit top of Group F, three points clear of Lyon, with nine points from four games.
Previous Encounters:
Lyon won their only previous meeting with Man City, picking up a 2-1 victory in Manchester on matchday one.
View From Both Camps:
Bruno Genesio (Lyon):
“We are facing a team who are superior to us on paper but, as you saw in the first game, we are able to win and we hope to do the same thing tomorrow. I will be telling my team they all need to be at 150 per cent.”
Pep Guardiola (Man City):
“It is a big chance to be in Europe in February, We lost one game and bounced back. We reacted so well, but the job is not over.”
“We have to win one more and hopefully, we can close the group stage. In the first half, they were better. In the second half, we improved but it wasn’t enough.”
“When you lose the first game at home, the group stage becomes so tough. We did our job winning the next three and we are lucky that opponents didn’t win.”
Team News:
Bernardo Silva, Ilkay Gundogan and Gabriel Jesus have been ruled out of Manchester City’s Champions League Group F clash at Lyon on Tuesday.
Midfielder Kevin De Bruyne, left-back Benjamin Mendy and goalkeeper Claudio Bravo (Achilles) remain on the long-term injury list.
Meanwhile the hosts are without Amine Gouiri and may not be able to call upon Rafael, who is a doubt. Nabil Fekir is expected to return after being substituted at half-time in Saturday’s 1-0 victory over Saint-Etienne.
Predicted Lineups:
Lyon (4-2-3-1): Lopes; Tete, Marcelo, Denayer, Mendy; Tousart, Ndombele; Traore, Fekir, Aouar; Depay.
Manchester City (4-3-3): Ederson; Walker, Stones, Laporte, Delph; Foden, Fernandinho, Silva; Mahrez, Aguero, Sterling.
Match Prediction:
Lyon will hope to do the double over Manchester City in the Champions League after their 2-1 win at the Etihad Stadium earlier on matchday 1. The reverse fixture was a big wake-up call for City and the players have responded in an exceptional manner ever since, and are yet to lose on the road this season. Lyon will to make the most of their home advantage, although beating an in-form City would certainly prove to be an uphill task.
Lyon 1-3 Manchester City
