Bayern vs. Lyon Preview

By: Inara | September 29th, 2008

Since Lyon have only one point so far - from a home game at that - it’s crucial that they walk away with at least a point tomorrow evening in Munich. With Fiorentina taking on Steaua in Italy, it’s likely the Italians will get three points, so unless Lyon want to hang out in the bottom of the group, a good performance tomorrow is a must.

September 30, 2008
Allianz Arena, Munich
2:45 PM ET (20:45 CET, 19:45 GMT)

Background Info:

You know how Lyon are cursed when it comes to playing Italian teams? Well, this time, it’s German teams who are cursed playing against Lyon. The club has encountered four different German sides, Bayern (twice), Stuttgart, Werder Bremen, and Bayer Leverkusen, and in those ten matches, they have racked up seven wins, one draw, and only two losses. Of the four matches against Bayern, Lyon have won two, lost one, and drew one. The most recent confrontation, in 2003/2004, saw Lyon win 2-1 in Germany.

But that’s past history, and as I always like to remember, it takes just a single lapse in concentration and a split second for someone to score a goal, so it’s important that Lyon approach their match tomorrow with the utmost caution and respect.

Bayern isn’t doing that great at the moment - after six league games, they’re currently in ninth place, with two wins, two draws, and two losses. They’ve only scored seven goals but have conceded eight. However, they did win their opening Champions League match against away at Steaua, whereas Lyon could only draw at home with Fiorentina, so in that respect, Bayern are in a much stronger position.

It’s hard to know what to expect tomorrow from Bayern. They are coming off the heels of two defeats - a humiliating 5-2 loss to Werder Bremen and a 1-0 loss to Hannover. There is tons of pressure on Jurgen Klinsmann as well as player drama due to the situation, but then again, teams sometimes react positively to adverse situations. Tomorrow, Bayern might decide to wake up from their funk and attempt to set things right - and what better venue then a Champions League match at home?

Ribery could win the game all by himself - if he’s in form.

Bayern will be boosted by the return of Franck Ribery, who is just returning from an injury he picked up during Euro 2008. So far, he’s made two brief substitute appearances but has yet to play a full match. But while Ribery concedes that he is far from peak form, he’s eager not just for his first Champions League appearance but also to come against a French team he has never won against - he’s already promised that Lyon will not leave with any points. And in addition to Ribery, Bayern are also home to two other players that have snubbed Lyon recently - Miroslav Klose and Massimo Oddo (as well as Marcell Jansen, but he’s moved on to Hamburg). Bayern have a ton of other players that need to be watched, including Luca Toni, Bastian Schweinsteiger, and Lukas Podolski, so Puel will have his hands full figuring out tactics.

Their coach is Jurgen Klinsmann, he of the World Cup fame, but his start at Bayern hasn’t been ideal, and there are rumors that his job is riding on tomorrow’s game. I don’t know how true that is, but Klinsmann is approaching the match very warily and has dubbed Lyon their strongest opponent yet.

Compared to their Bavarian friends, Lyon are doing comparatively well. Domestically, Lyon are five points ahead of second placed Toulouse and have notched six wins and one defeat, with twelve goals scored and only three allowed. Their first group stage game against Fiorentina wasn’t the best, but despite the two goals conceded (both due to breakdowns in defense), Lyon can take heart from the fact that they had the mental fortitude to come back from being two goals down.

There is a sense of optimism around the club, and the subtle changes that Puel has made since his arrival are starting to bear fruit. He’s so far been successful in his rotation policy and has forced Lyon to be flexible even when they didn’t want to. And he’s brought a real winning spirit to the club - something that was missing last year.

Player news:

Unfortunately, Fabio Grosso lost the race to be fit in time for this match, though at least he is training normally. Fabio Santos has also returned to training, but as a precaution, Puel has left him behind. Francois Clerc’s rehabilitation is going well, but he’s still months away from returning while Cesar Delgado is not quite ready to play just yet.

Le groupe lyonnais: Lloris, Vercoutre - Réveillère, Cris, Bodmer, Mensah, Boumsong, Gassama - Toulalan, Makoun, Juninho, Källström, Pjanic - Govou, Benzema, Ederson, Mounier, Fred, Piquionne, Keita

The good news is that Kader Keita is finally healed from his mysterious forearm injury and has been included in the group. Juninho has recovered from his muscle strain enough to also be included, though no word on whether he will start. And best of all, Karim Benzema’s knock to the ankle last weekend against Nancy turned out to be minor, so he’s been cleared to play.

Tactics:

It’s a tossup as to whether Puel sticks to the usual 4-3-3 or if he will go with the 4-4-2 that worked so well this weekend. I suppose a great deal depends on the status of Juninho’s fitness - in a 4-4-2, he would be more out of place, but in a 4-3-3, he is supported by two other midfielders and doesn’t have to worry about playing on the wings either.

Personally speaking, the following formation is something I don’t particularly want to see, but I expect to see it based on Puel’s previous selections.

Lloris
Reveillere - Cris - Bodmer - Mensah
Toulalan - Makoun - Juninho
Govou - Fred - Benzema

It seems obvious that the above backline is what will be on the pitch tomorrow night. Cris and Mathieu Bodmer have managed to make a working defensive partnership, though it’s by no means a smooth one. But Jean-Alain Boumsong does not have the trust of the coach (especially after the Fiorentina game), so until John Mensah is done with his makeshift left back duties, that’s the pairing we’ll be seeing. Speaking of Mensah, he’s still really awkward on the left, and if Klinsmann has any intelligence whatsoever, he’ll utilize that weak spot in the Lyon defense. I just get nightmares thinking of Ribery massacring our left flank.

A lot hinges on the presence of Juninho.

In midfield, the duo of Jeremy Toulalan and Jean II Makoun is sure to start. Toulalan was tired in the last game, but Makoun was phenomenal, so here’s hoping Toulalan will be back to his usual dominant self tomorrow night. Juninho’s presence is a bit of a question mark. Though he’s been cleared to play, Puel hasn’t indicated whether he will start him tomorrow night. If Juni doesn’t start, then expect to see Ederson start instead.

Sidney Govou is back in the lineup after being suspended against Nancy, so he doesn’t have the excuse of being tired. It’s important that Govou plays well because when he does, he has the capacity to win a match on his own. The problem is that he’s so unpredictable, so he disappoints as often as he amazes. Karim Benzema looks sure to start despite his injury scare. As for Fred, I’m not sure how I feel about him starting. He had a great match last weekend, but that’s pretty much been the only one, and I don’t know if its worth taking a gamble on him because the potential for a screw-up is huge, especially if Benzema has to play on the left. I’d rather see both play up top together.

Viewing Options:

You can watch the game on tape delay on Setanta at 7:30 PM ET. But that’s it if you are in the US or Canada. That’s pretty sad because this is probably the biggest match up tomorrow. But since no English teams are involved, I can’t say I’m surprised. You can check here for match links or buy a stream from UEFA.com for $8.

Expected Result:

I don’t even know where to begin. I know what Lyon are capable of, but Bayern are just all over the place and could either dramatically change things around tomorrow or dramatically suck even more. So I’m going to close my eyes and guess a 1-1 draw.

First image courtesy of sport24.com.