Juventus FC
Olympique Lyonnais
Olympique Lyonnais
JUVENTUS LOOK TO REACH QUARTER FINALS BY OVERCOMING OUT-OF-PRACTICE LYON
Juventus to win 3-1 on the night, and 3-2 on aggregate.
Both Juventus and Lyon would have hoped to enter this crucial second-leg Round of 16 clashes in better circumstances.
For the home side, despite recently clinching their 9th successive Serie A title with two games to spare, their form has been patchy, to say the least, suffering defeat on five occasions since the restart, including to Napoli in the Coppa Italia Final.
Lyon will welcome back injured talisman Memphis Depay from injury, though it’s the whole squad’s lack of playing time that will concern them. With the French government cancelling the league, the only match they’ve played since March 8th was the defeat to PSG in the French League Cup final last week.
Juventus will be relying on their experienced superstars, especially Cristiano Ronaldo, to turn on the quality when it matters.
Lyon, who finished 7th in Ligue 1, know that winning the competition is the only chance they have of playing in it next year. Their mix of youth and athletic play can be a handle for most teams, but it will be a tough ask for them against the established Old Lady.
Form Guide (all comps.): W L W L L
Reasons to be cheerful
Reasons to be fearful
One man continues to dominate the Champions League like no other.
Unsurprisingly, Cristiano Ronaldo has scored more goals in the knockout stages than anyone else with 65. Put simply, when the biggest matches come around, no one enjoys the spotlight quite like the five-time Ballon d’Or winner.
But it’s not just Ronaldo with proven quality at this level – eight of their current squad starred as they reached the Final in 2017 - from Chiellini to Pjanic, Bernardeschi to Dybala, they have gold dust sprinkled throughout.
They’ll be looking to turn on the magic for the big occasion.
Star Man – Cristiano Ronaldo
Who else? Ok, so team-mate Paulo Dybala has this week been named ‘Serie A MVP’ this season, but as matchwinners come, there are none bigger than Ronaldo. He’s in red-hot form too, with 10 goals in 13 games since the restart.
Lyon will be hoping he has an off night.
Form Guide (all comps.): W W W L L
Reasons to be cheerful:
Reasons to be fearful:
Lyon faces the prospect of next season being their first without European football since 1996-97, unless they guarantee their spot by winning this season’s tournament.
Those are the near-impossible odds facing manager Rudi Garcia and his players, though they’ll cling to their slender 1-0 advantage from the first leg in hope they can pull off the unexpected.
Despite a poor league season, they have quality players in Memphis Depay and Moussa Dembélé who can trouble any defence when on their game.
Star Man – Memphis Depay
The former Manchester United attacker has been good value since signing for Lyon and was in fine form before suffering a serious injury in December. Now fit again, the explosive playmaker will be looking to pick up where he left off.
It’s hard to look beyond the power and experience of Juventus, even if they do need to overturn a first leg defeat.
They’ll be confident of scoring the two-plus goals required on the night, especially with Cristiano Ronaldo as a lifeline any team would envy.
Lyon will be telling themselves that they’ll get a chance or two, and if they take one then it makes it that much more difficult for the Bianconeri. Depay and co. will have to be razor sharp to punish the normally watertight Italian defence.
Juventus to win 3-1 on the night, and 3-2 on aggregate.
