OL IN THE FIRING LINE FOR PSG

There was a time a visit from OL would instill terror in teams with Lyon the dominant force in French football for much of the first decade of the millenium. That era has passed, however, and PSG have taken on the mantle of Ligue 1′s most-feared team. There is good reason for their rivals to be afraid. Laurent Blanc’s men came into the weekend with a four-point lead atop the table were ten points clear of fourth-placed Olympique de Marseille.

They are not merely a domestic giant either. The 2-1 Champions League win over Olympiacos on Wednesday, courtesy of goals from their potent front duo of Edinson Cavani and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, sealed their place atop Group C and a berth in the knockout stages with a game to spare.

“We played fantastically in the first half,” stated Ibrahimovic, whose seventh-minute opener was then followed by a red card for Marco Verratti seconds after the re-start. “It was different in the second half, but we showed great spirit and our combative character.”

That came in the form of Cavani’s 90th-minute winner which followed the Greek visitors’ potentially morale-sapping equaliser ten minutes previously. Blanc has, however, instilled in his team an unflinching self-belief that bodes ill for those intent on toppling PSG from their perch, and says much about the man appointed coach in late June.

“Laurent Blanc is a great coach and he deserves a long contract,” a smiling PSG president Nasser Al Khelaifi told the media in the wake of PSG’s win over Olympiacos. “But we don’t talk about that in front of microphones and cameras. The team’s play this year is of a better quality than last season. Blanc is one of the best coaches in the world.”

Vercoutre back for OL

Lyon boss Rémi Garde has often found himself the subject of similar praise from his president, Jean-Michel Aulas. After a difficult start to the season, the former Arsenal midfielder has lifted his side into the top half of the table with two wins in a three-game unbeaten run. The 1-1 draw at home to Valenciennes last weekend was less than OL had perhaps expected against the top-flight strugglers, though Rémy Vercoutre’s return to action after his seven-month lay-off with a knee ligament injury was a positive for Garde to draw on.
Another is qualification for the Europa League knockout stages following Thursday evening ‘s 1-0 defeat of Real Betis at an icy Stade de Gerland. “Without controlling everything, we were able to win,” said Garde after seeing Bafétimbi Gomis’s second-half goal see off the visitors from Spain. “It’s good not to have conceded a goal. Five matches without defeat and qualification, I think that will do us good. We’ve had a lot of tough times. We can now look forward in this competition and dive back into the league.”
Garde will most likely have to do that without Jimmy Briand, withdrawn in the first half against Betis after suffering a muscle strain, as he seeks to snap his club’s five-game winless streak in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower.

Probable teams

Paris Saint-Germain: Sirigu; Van der Wiel, Alex, Silva (c), Maxwell; Verratti, Motta, Matuidi; Cavani, Ibrahimovic, Lavezzi

Olympique Lyonnais: Vercoutre: M. Lopes, Bisevac, Umtiti, Bédimo; Malbranque, Gonalons (c), Fofana, Gourcuff; Lacazette, Gomis

OL IN THE FIRING LINE FOR PSG