That’s all from me tonight. Thanks very much for following and we will see what this young, resourceful Lyon team is capable of on neutral ground in a week. Good night.
Updated
Lyon have often pulled it out of the bag in big games in recent years but still pretty astonished at that result. Yes they were 1-0 up from the first leg but remember the context: one competitive game in five months before tonight and rotten in Ligue 1 for most of the season
— Andy Scott (@andpscott) August 7, 2020
Lyon will now face Manchester City next week in Lisbon. If you somehow don’t already know know, City rolled past Real Madrid after a couple of howlers from Raphael Varane.
I just can't feel surprised that a Juventus team that won two of its last eight Serie A games didn't magically transform into something better in the competition they've always done worse in.
— Nicky Bandini (@NickyBandini) August 7, 2020
Two Ligue 1 teams in the last 8 of the Champions League.
— John Bennett (@JohnBennettBBC) August 7, 2020
Farmers’ what???
“Really embarrassing performance from Juventus,” says Karen Carney on BT Sport. As is so often the case, in the end only Cristiano Ronaldo looked like he was capable of winning the game for Juventus tonight. With the exception of perhaps Alex Sandro, so much of what Juventus produced today was uninspiring and bleak. More questions to be asked of Maurizio Sarri.
There may be no atmosphere, but the emotions remain. Paulo Dybala is currently in tears in the crowd.
Full time: Juventus 2-1 Lyon (2-2 agg. Lyon advance.)
Lyon take out Juventus! An incredible effort from Lyon in their second competitive month in five months.
90 min+4 De Ligt is now playing as a forward as he concedes a free kick on the edge of Lyon’s box. These are desperate times for the home side.
90 min+3 Ronaldo’s free kick flies into the wall and is deflected for a corner. The Lyon players celebrated as if it were a goal itself before clearing the corner. Three minutes to go...
90 min+2. Gonzalo Higuain hasn’t done much tonight but he just held up the ball excellently on the edge of the area to win a free kick for Ronaldo in a great position...
90 min This is it. 6 minutes of added time stand between Lyon and a place in the quarters.
88 min. Admirably, Lyon have not just parked their men behind the ball. They are still trying to finish on their terms, but as they chased another goal they were very nearly caught on the break. A cynical foul from Marçal on a counter attacking Ramsey earns him a yellow card, the ninth of tonight.
85 min Well, this is horrible. After just 12 minutes on the pitch, Paulo Dybala pulls up and limps off. He has quickly been replaced by 21 year-old Marco Olivieri.
Updated
81 min It’s hard not to expect another big Ronaldo moment before this is all over. It nearly came after an excellent run from Sandro, who found Rabiot before the ball rolled to Ronaldo. The Portuguese took a couple of touches and then put his foot through the ball, but Anderson came up with a great block to deny him.
78 min Drama! A bit of a mess from Szczesny, who flew off his line to punch the ball away and completely missed the ball. As his former Arsenal teammate Ramsey attempted to clear the ball away, the Welshman also clipped Dembele who went down called for a penalty. After a pause for VAR, this one was rightfully not given.
76 min Chance! Dybala is already making his mark on his game with some beautiful combination play, instantly speeding up the Juventus passing. After Juventus win a corner, the Argentine then whips the corner in directly onto Ronaldo’s forehead. Surprisingly, Ronaldo sent the free header just over the bar. You really would have expected him to score there.
72 min After the second drinks break, Paulo Dybala is finally on. He replaces Bernardeschi. Cuadrado also made way for Danilo.
70 min Ronaldo is purring right now. He just made a fool out of Dubois on the left before whipping in an excellent cross to Higuain. Of course, Higuain has been a disaster so far today so he sent the header well over the bar. He really should have hit the target at the very least.
66 min A couple of substitutions for the away side. Former Arsenal player Jeff Reine-Adelaide replaces Karl Toko-Ekambi and Moussa Dembele, Lyon’s top goalscorer, finally comes on to replace Memphis Depay.
62 min After all of the penalty discussion, there can be no doubt about the skill and conviction behind that strike. Meanwhile, Aaron Ramsey has replaced Pjanic. Juventus will chase after this essential goal and you wonder how long Lyon can keep up with so few games in the team’s legs.
GOAL! Juventus 2-1 Lyon (2-2 agg. Ronaldo 60)
Out of nowhere, Ronaldo picks up the ball outside the box and absolutely obliterates a left-footed bullet into the top of the net. Just like that. Of course.
Updated
57 min It’s Lyon’s time for an excellent spell of possession, also primarily on their left flank. The ball rolls out to young Bruno Guimarães who fires a strike from distance just over the bar.
54 min Juventus have started the second half well with ample possession and they are moving the ball at a decent tempo through Lyon’s lines. Alex Sandro has particularly been a good outlet on the left flank. However, this attack comes to nothing as Lopes collects an overhit cross from Cuadrado.
52 min Anthony Lopes is having a solid game in goal for Lyon. This time, Pjanic whipped in a free kick from the left flank, which Lopes confidently met with two fists to send it out of danger.
50 min A spectacular pass from Cuadrado, who managed was aiming for Sandro on the other flank but his pass evaded the nearest player by about 10 metres and it went out for a throw in. Meanwhile, Aaron Ramsey and Moussa Dembele are both warming up on the sidelines.
💯 Cristiano Ronaldo has scored his last 11 penalties in this competition ⚽️#UCL pic.twitter.com/uxb6nz3gDp
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) August 7, 2020
47 min Ronaldo goes down on the edge of the area, but this time not even he protests. It looks like he picked up the ball and was ready to fire, only for his foot to collide with Caqueret, sending him falling down.
45 min And we are off in the second half. Juventus kick off.
From Matt Richman:
“I have to protest both of those penalty decisions. Aouar was already on his way down when Bentancur cleanly took the ball on the ground with his trailing leg in the proper position behind him. Meanwhile, Memphis deserved better with his arm tucked so close to his body. Still 0-0 as I would have called it (as I am sure everyone is dying to know).”
Over on BT Sport, Steve Mcmanaman concurs: “I don’t think either is a penalty.” I would not like to be referee Felix Zwayer today...
Considering how soft the penalty he conceded was, one would hope and assume that the Lyon captain still retains his status as a hero in the dressing room.
12': Memphis Depay scores a penalty
— Squawka News (@SquawkaNews) August 7, 2020
41': Memphis Depay concedes a penalty
Hero to Zero. pic.twitter.com/pWrP1A8YPm
1.5% of all goals in CL history have been scored by Cristiano Ronaldo
— Duncan Alexander (@oilysailor) August 7, 2020
From Xavier:
“I don’t understand how either penalty decision was given after VAR checks. Surely Bentancur takes the ball comfortably and Memphis barely moved his arm and it certainly wasn’t separated from his body. The handball rule continues to mystify.”
Updated
Some very big decisions to come for Maurizio Sarri in Turin. The obvious, biggest question of all is when will Paulo Dybala come on?
Half time: Juventus 1-1 Lyon (1-2 agg.)
A game of two penalties so far and a pretty good response from Juventus after the early goal.
Updated
45 min Four minutes of extra time now and we are already halfway through. This game is poised very nicely.
45 min Admirably, Lyon have responded to the goal by going back on the attack. Once again, they are finding most of their joy down the left and Houssem Aouar is particularly having a decent game. This time, Lyon win a free kick on the left after a foul on Cornet, but Bonucci clears with a firm header.
GOAL! Juventus 1-1 Lyon (1-2 agg. Ronaldo 43)
Ronaldo delivers with a cool penalty, placed low to the right corner. As you would expect. Game on.
Updated
41 min And now, a penalty for Juve! Juventus immediately won another free kick from the left. Pjanic took it and it collided with Depay’s arm. A huge opportunity...
Updated
40 min What a save from Lopes! Excellent free kick from Ronaldo, who placed it beautifully into the near post from just left of the area. Out of nowhere, Lopes leaps into the air to save a great effort.
39 min Bentancur is tripped by Dubois right on the edge of the box after a nice backheel flick by Ronaldo. Ronaldo is standing over the ball in a great position. Yellow card for Dubois.
36 min Back on the pitch, Juventus are pushing again. Ronaldo’s free kick fired straight into the wall, but after Juventus recovered the ball Cuadrado found Higuain with a decent long ball. A decent header from the Argentine saved by Lopes.
From Ian C:
Evening! I’ve lost track of what month it is the whereabouts of captain Fekir? Can you keep me abreast of my ignorance?
I very much relate to this. Fekir moved to Betis at the end of last season. It should also be noted that Lucas Tousart, goalscorer in the previous fixture, has departed for Hertha BSC.
32 min A yellow card for Cuadrado, who tripped up a storming Aouar on the left flank. However, Depay’s attempt to whip a free kick into the box lands safely in Szczesny’s arms.
Updated
From Alex Whitney:
“Looks as if Juve have stolen a page from the Arsenal p(l)aybook, and fired the kit man- after all, someone clearly didn’t know enough to separate the black tops from the whites in the wash.?”
28 min These duels between countrymen De Ligt and Depay are enjoyable. Depay wins a free kick with a yell of pain after a completely unnecessary push by the young Juve player.
6 - Memphis Depay is the second Dutch player to score in six consecutive Champions League games, after Ruud van Nistelrooy. Greatness. pic.twitter.com/nm7Cq2AnZK
— OptaJohan (@OptaJohan) August 7, 2020
25 min After that ten minute barrage from Juventus, Lyon just found a decent spell of possession in Juventus’s half for the first time since the goal. It didn’t come to much, but the away team is moving the ball well and finding a lot of joy through Toko-Ekambi down the left. Cooling break now.
21 min Moments after Bernadeschi’s solo run, Ronaldo had a go himself, sending his header over the bar after a long ball from deep. They are trying.
19 min Juventus have responded very well here. This time Bernardeschi went very close with some lovely skill, beating about four Lyon men and then sitting Lopes down before sending his finish into the side netting from a tight angle.
16 min Juventus have had a fairly long spell of possession since the goal, with Alex Sandro finding Ronaldo with a lovely lofted through ball from the left. Ronaldo just sent his finish wide of the far post before he was called offside. Still, that was encouraging from the home side.
GOAL! Juventus 0-1 Lyon (agg: 0-2, Depay 13)
Gorgeous. Depay dinks his penalty down the middle and eases Lyon ahead. An enormous goal.
Updated
10 min PEN! Lyon have been extremely productive from the left in these early stages, and Aouar this time found himself with the ball in the box. Out of nowhere, Bentancur flew in with a slide tackle. A clear foul.
Updated
8 min Chance! an excellent run from Toko-Ekambi, whose cross from the left flank eventually found Houssem Aouar. The midfielder fired a volley first time, which flew left of Szczesny’s post, but not by much.
5 min A sloppy tackle from Caqueret on Alex Sandro yields an early free kick for Juventus. It found Sandro himself, who flicked a header on to De Ligt, whose decent cross was whisked away. The Dutchman is belatedly called for offside. This has been a quiet opening five minutes.
Updated
2 min Karl Toko-Ekambi, the surprise starter today over Dembele, picks th eball up on the left flank and wins an early corner from De Ligt. However, it didn’t come to much.
1 min After a moment of silence in a darkened pitch, Lyon kick things off.
Updated
The players have arrived on the pitch. How lovely it is to hear that famous anthem again, even if it is echoing around an empty arena. Kick-off imminent.
Some pre-match reading.
Moussa Dembele benched by Rudi Garcia tonight and not happy at all. Big call from the Lyon manager pic.twitter.com/oYMfAvB2pA
— Julien Laurens (@LaurensJulien) August 7, 2020
What a time for it. Dembélé averaged 1.1 goals per 90 mins in Ligue 1 this season, so he will clearly be a huge threat for Juventus if and when he is called on.
Only the 2nd time in 2020 that Moussa Dembélé starts on Lyon's bench in a match, as per @Statsdufoot.
— Get French Football News (@GFFN) August 7, 2020
There is one major omission for each team: Paulo Dybala will not start tonight for Juventus after his well established injury issues, while the ever-impressive Moussa Dembele will also begin on the bench.
We have our teams:
Juventus XI: Szczesny; Cuadrado, De Ligt, Bonucci, Alex Sandro; Bentancur, Pjanic, Rabiot; Bernardeschi, Higuain, Ronaldo
Subs: Buffon, Pinsoglio, Danilo, Chellini, Rugani, Demiral, Ramsey, Matuidi, Muratore, Olivieri, Dybala.
Lyon XI: Lopes; Dubois, Denayer, Marcelo, Marçal, Cornet; Caqueret, Guimarães, Aouar; Depay, Toko-Ekambi
Subs: Tatarusanu, Diomande, Andersen, Rafael, Dembele, Traore, Mendes, Reine-Adelaide, Jean Lucas, Tete, Bard, Cherki.
Updated
⚪️⚫️ Cristiano Ronaldo's record in this competition 🤯#UCL pic.twitter.com/jo6duw38Wd
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) August 7, 2020
Backstage on a #JuveUCL night! 🤩⚪️⚫️#JuveOL #ForzaJuve pic.twitter.com/tX0HR879ut
— JuventusFC (#Stron9er 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆) (@juventusfcen) August 7, 2020
Predictably, Sarri was asked in his pre-match presser whether a bad result today would have consequences for his future. His response, as reported by BBC Sport:
“I don’t think my future is riding on this game. Thinking this way you make the club directors look like amateurs. I think I’m dealing with high level directors. They will decide whether to continue or to change. But it doesn’t depend on a single game.”
Paulo Dybala has missed the last two Juve games. All eyes on whether he will start tonight.
Updated
Preamble
Hello! Welcome to our coverage of tonight’s Champions League game between Juventus and Lyon as the Old Lady attempt to overcome a one goal deficit in order to keep themselves in the competition for a little while longer.
Just a couple of minor things have happened around the world in the five months since the first leg, so let’s recap again: Back in February, Lucas Tousart scored the only goal at OL Stadium before Lyon held on to secure a first ever win over Juventus. At that time, Lyon took advantage of Juventus temporarily going down to 10 men after a dramatic looking head injury for Matthijs De Ligt, but they sealed an extremely worthy win against a lethargic Juventus that didn’t register a single shot on target.
Afterwards, Sarri was very confused about his team’s laboured build-up play, which only further helped to circulate questions about whether he is the right man to command Juventus to more European success. Although his team sealed the Serie A title after the break, those questions remain after a laboured return. Juventus arrive on Friday with three losses in four games, their weaknesses unchanged: an over-reliance on Cristiano Ronaldo and Paulo Dybala, a problematic midfield and often not enough width, but we go on in search of something different tonight.
While Juventus have played 14 competitive games since their league restarted in June, Lyon have played only one (1!) competitive game since March - their loss on penalties to PSG in the Coupe de la Ligue final. The only thing more bizarre than the fact that we are watching a Champions League game on a Friday is the complete contrast in preparation between some of the Champions League teams after the French leagues were cancelled this season.
There is not much to be said about Lyon’s form. Throughout the past couple of months, most teams predictably took time to reach full intensity after the break so it is incredibly tough task for Lyon to match Juventus’s intensity for 90+ minutes in order to hold on to their slender lead. It is also difficult to imagine that morale has been high since the Ligue 1 season was ended with Lyon sitting in 7th, prompting some understandable outrage from the club. None of this is easy, but Lyon have no choice but to be ready at 8pm tonight.
Updated
