Olympique Lyonnais face a crucial night in their European season this Wednesday. After earning a 1-1 draw in Istanbul in the first leg, OL host Fenerbahçe at 9 p.m. in a Champions League playoff second leg that promises to be particularly tense.
Everything remains to be decided for Paulo Fonseca’s men. In front of their home crowd, Lyon will need to make the difference this time to secure qualification. The Portuguese coach is not expected to make major changes to the team that performed well in Turkey. According to the latest indications, the same starting XI from the first leg could be retained, with Greif in goal behind a defence of Maitland-Niles, Kluivert, Niakhaté and Abner.
Lyon expected to stick with continuity
In midfield, OL are again expected to rely on the Tessmann-Morton-Tolisso trio. The Lyon captain will obviously have a major role to play in a match where the midfield battle could determine much of the outcome. Up front, Paulo Fonseca should also keep faith with Nuamah, Openda and Fofana, a quick trio capable of attacking space as Lyon look to put more pressure on the Turkish defence than they did in the first leg.
Fenerbahçe, meanwhile, will be without several important players. Marco Asensio and Kerem Aktürkoglu are reportedly unavailable, which should force the Istanbul club to slightly adjust its setup. Yüksek is expected to join Matteo Guendouzi and N’Golo Kanté in midfield, while the attacking threat will remain significant with Mason Greenwood, Talisca and Nene Dorgeles.
After the 1-1 draw in the first leg, neither side has any room for error. Lyon will have home advantage but must be wary of a Fenerbahçe team with enough experience and attacking quality to punish the slightest mistake. The probable lineups are: Lyon: Greif – Maitland-Niles, Kluivert, Niakhaté, Abner – Tessmann, Morton, Tolisso (c) – Nuamah, Openda, Fofana. Fenerbahçe: Ederson – Nelson Semedo, Skriniar (c), Aké, Brown – Guendouzi, Kanté, Yüksek – Greenwood, Talisca, Nene Dorgeles.
