CL Preview: Olympique Lyon - FiorentinaWhat: Champions League, Group F, Matchday 1
Who: Olympique Lyon - Fiorentina
When: Wednesday, September 17 2008, 20:45CET
Where: Stade Gerland, Lyon Lyon Looking To Rumble
The seven time French champions welcome Fiorentina to the Stade Gerland on Wednesday night in what promises to be a cracking game. It will be Lyon’s 75th Champions League tie and they will be hoping to celebrate that milestone and get their group phase up and running with a win against the Italians.
Les Gones will be involved in their ninth successive group stage and thus their experience in the Champions League is far greater than their opponents, however, the French side have never played the Viola and so they will not really know what to expect against Cesare Prandelli’s men.
Lyon will need to be well aware of the Italian threat as they have not managed to win against sides from Serie A in four of their last games against them. During the 2005/06 season, the Ligue 1 side drew and lost to Milan and history repeated itself against Roma a year later as Lyon lost 2-0 at home, many will remember that game for Amatino Mancini’s mesmerising goal.
The first round of Champions League matches always present teams with the unexpected and Lyon will be thrown into the unknown against Fiorentina, who have so far had a mixed start to the Serie A season.
Claude Puel’s men come into this Group F fixture in hot form and full of confidence following their super come back against Nice at the weekend in Ligue 1. Les Gones seemed to be heading towards a 2-0 loss against Nice before a Juninho brace and a Karim Benzema strike sealed maximum points late on.
European form at the Stade Gerland is impressive and thus the French side will take even more confidence and motivation from that.They boast a record which has only seen them lose twice in 23 home games in the Champions League. However, one of those two losses was against Italian opponents.
Fiorentina will need to keep a close eye on Benzema, the young French international ended last season as top-scorer in Ligue 1 and he has already hit five goals this term. He will be looking to continue his prowess up front against La Viola as his side look to register their first European points of the season. Fiorentina’s Welcome Return
Cesare Prandelli’s hard work and the Della Valle family’s investment, organisation and structure have seen the Tuscan side reach the pinnacle of football once again. Their involvement in the Champions League represents the end of a long and winding road back from bankruptcy in 2002, and the beginning of a new chapter in the Viola’s colourful history.
Football was in a different era the last time Fiorentina were involved in this competition. Rewind back to the 1999/00 season and you get the picture. Batistuta, Rui, Costa, Chiesa and Di Livio amongst others. Household names which will live long in the memory of the club’s glory days.
However, now it’s time to turn a new leaf. Prandelli has guided his side back to where they belong and they did it style too. A sublime run in Serie A saw the Viola push Italian and European Cup experts Milan off the road to Europe’s elite competition. Milan’s poor form had them diverted onto the UEFA Cup slip road while Fiorentina kept their foot on the gas and cruised down and into the Champions League highway.
Slowly but surely the Prandelli project has prospered but this in only the beginning. Constant development and a good strategy has seen the club make huge waves as they continue to go onwards and upwards in search of more glory. The Stadio Artemio Franchi side invested heavily over the summer, getting rid of deadwood and brining in youthful players who share the same hunger and ambition as their coach.
Alberto Gilardino is the name that stands out. The former Milan striker scored against Lyon for the Rossoneri three years ago and he will be eager to get his name back onto the European score sheets. The
里昂展望
七连冠的法国冠军里昂将在周三迎来佛罗伦萨的挑战,这是里昂的第75场小组赛,他们希望赢得这只意大利球队
Les Gones 的第9次冠军杯小组赛,有丰富的经验,他们从没和佛罗伦萨交过手,所以他们不知道会发生什么面对普兰德利的球队的时候
里昂很清楚来自意大利球队的威胁因为前面4场比赛没赢,他们在0506时输给米兰以及一年后对罗马的主场0比2,很多人都记得小曼奇尼的奇幻般的进球。
冠军联赛的第一轮通常会意想不到的并且里昂就碰到完全陌生的佛罗伦萨,已经开始的意大利联赛。
Claude Puel的球队在法甲联赛中赢的了逆转,在0比2落后的情况下,靠儒尼尼奥和本泽马的进球逆转获胜。
里昂的球场在欧洲中有好的记录,他们的23个主场只输了2个,但是其中一个就是意大利球队。