A worrying stat for Manchester City: no team have ever won the Champions League after losing their first group game. Gulp! I’ll leave you with Paul Wilson’s match report. Thanks for reading. Night!
John Stones speaks!
Really disappointing. To concede two goals like we did, very frustrating. We came in at half-time a bit deflated. We picked ourselves up and came out fighting. It’s really frustating how we’ve conceded the two goals. We’ve put pressure on ourselves to win the next game. We knew Lyon were a good side and we showed them respect. We go again. We have a lot of games to play and we should be positive about that.”
Bernardo Silva speaks!
We have to focus on ourselves. We didn’t press with the same intensity we usually do and they scored two goals. We were not good enough tonight. We did not want to start this way but it is what it is. We are not favourites. We have a good team and we will try to do better than last season. We are not favourites, but we will try to do our best to win it.”
Lyon were excellent tonight and fully deserved a victory they won’t forget in a hurry. They took advantage of Manchester City’s lethargy in the first half, taking a 2-0 lead thanks to excellent goals from Maxwel Cornet and Nabil Fekir, and they held firm when Leroy Sane halved the deficit midway through the second half. The French side go top of Group F - Shakhtar Donetsk drew 2-2 with Hoffenheim earlier - and City find themselves in last place. Who saw that coming? Don’t lie. City were expected to win this one comfortably - and maybe that was part of the problem. With Pep Guardiola in the stands and Mikel Arteta on the touchline, they never got going. They were ponderous for long spells, made too many errors and struggled to create clear chances. Other than Sergio Aguero’s late chance, there weren’t many heart-in-mouth moments in the Lyon area. Guys, Guardiola is going to be seriously unhappy.
Full-time: Manchester City 1-2 Lyon
That’s your lot! Lyon’s manager, Bruno Genesio, can barely contain his glee on the touchline!
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90 min+4: Mahrez dinks a cross into the middle. Denayer heads it over. One last corner. But Lyon deal with it. And...
90 min+3: Traore’s booked for illegally blocking an Ederson clearance. Time’s almost up for City.
90 min+2: Bertrand Traore replaces Cornet, the scorer of Lyon’s first goal.
90 min+1: The corner’s cleared as far as the edge of the area and Sane slashes a shot wide.
90 min: Aguero goes on a Aguerrooooooooooo-esque run, driving towards the right, past Denayer, through on goal. He smashes the ball goalwards, but Lopes stays big and tips it over! What a save! The officials, obviously, award a goal-kick. Then they row back on the decision. Not before Aguero has a major pop at the referee, who books the striker. There will be three added minutes.
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89 min: Depay threatens to reach a long ball before Laporte, who’s struggling to deal with the forward’s pace. Ederson, however, hares off his line to mop up. The danger’s not over yet, though. Ederson overruns the ball and looks like he’s about to lose it to Ndombele, who seems to be tugged back by the goalkeeper. The Italian referee waves play on.
88 min: Silva slides a pass to Sane on the left, but the German’s touch is too heavy. It’s the story of City’s night.
87 min: Silva escapes down the left, but his cross flies straight into Lopes’s arms.
86 min: Lyon deal with another City corner. City are running out of time. Lyon haven’t flinched at all. It would be harsh on them if City grab something.
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85 min: Walker smashes the free-kick over the bar. City’s fans sigh, then they get back to their crossword puzzles.
84 min: Sane’s tripped on the edge of the area by Tousart. It’s a bit to the left and probably too far wide for a shot.
83 min: Silva’s cross, Sane’s header, Lyon goal-kick. That was a decent chance. Sane was unmarked, but he took his eyes off the ball.
81 min: A City free-kick deep on the left after silly play from Cornet. But Sane’s delivery is a piping disgrace and Lyon clear their lines.
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79 min: Lucas Tousart replaces the excellent Nabil Fekir, whose stunning goal separates the sides.
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77 min: Fekir’s booked for tugging Delph’s shirt. There’s been a very strange, flat atmosphere at the Etihad this evening. There’s no energy from City’s fans. They sound bored.
76 min: City make their final change, Mahrez on for Sterling. Lyon respond by replacing Rafael with Leo Dubois.
75 min: Ndombele’s down after a collision with Sterling.
73 min: Sane’s the danger for City. He wriggles inside, terrifying Lyon’s defenders, and combines with Silva, who lays the ball off to Aguero for a fierce 20-yarder that’s too close to Lopes.
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72 min: Lyon have defended very well this evening, Bernardo’s goal the only blotch on their copybook. They’re a young side and they’ve shown a lot of composure so far.
69 min: City are quickly on the hunt for an equaliser, but Stones sees his header float over from Bernardo’s corner.
This is a brilliant goal and it’s all down to Leroy Sane’s dribbling ability. For the first time, he has proper room to run at Lyon on the left. He beats one man and then he skips round a wild hack from Rafael, who’s no match for the German’s quick feet. Sane makes his way to the byline and cuts the ball back to Bernardo, who guides a low left-footer to Lopes’s left.
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GOAL! Manchester City 1-2 Lyon (Bernardo Silva, 67 min)
Bernardo hauls City back in it!
66 min: Delph’s low piledriver isn’t beating Lopes. Maybe Delph should stop shooting now.
63 min: Sergio Aguero replaces the disappointing Gabriel Jesus. City need another one of his rescue acts.
62 min: Another slow City attack ends with Delph shooting over from 30 yards.
60 min: Ndombele moves down the right, looks up and slides a stunning diagonal ball through to Depay, cutting City’s defence completely open. Depay takes the ball in his stride and scoops a shot to Ederson’s left from the edge of the area, only for City’s goalkeeper to tip the ball on to the base of the post! What a save. That’s kept City in it.
59 min: Walker looks to clip a pass inside Mendy, but it’s too far ahead of Sterling.
58 min: Jesus heads over from Sterling’s tame free-kick. There’s been a weird and uncharacteristic lack of intensity and spark to City all night.
57 min: Sterling runs at Mendy on the right and wins a corner on the edge of the area when the Lyon left-back lunges in.
55 min: City make their first change, Leroy Sane replacing Ilkay Gundogan. Sterling moves to the right, Sane will run at Rafael on the left.
54 min: City counter after a Lyon attack breaks down. Sterling feeds a pass through to Silva, who leaves it to Jesus. Space opens up for the striker and his deflected shot almost sneaks past Lopes, only for the Lyon goalkeeper to react well and make a good save.
53 min: It’s non-stop City pressure at the moment, but they aren’t really finding their angles.
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51 min: Walker whips a deep cross to the far post. Silva hooks it back, but Pape Cheikh mops up. Lyon are sitting back, absorbing pressure. City, meanwhile, are getting Leroy Sane ready.
50 min: Gundogan tees up Fernandinho, who blasts wide from 20 yards.
48 min: City are looking for Sterling at every opportunity, but there hasn’t been much of a response yet.
46 min: City get the second half underway. What is tackles?
Half-time: Manchester City 0-2 Lyon
An awful half draws to a close for City, who have been made to pay for their sloppiness. Lyon leads thanks to goals from Maxwel Cornet and Nabil Fekir, leaving City with an uphill task. The problem for the hosts is that a seething Pep Guardiola can’t get into them during the break. See you in 15 minutes.
45 min+1: There will be two added minutes. Has Pep gone to the bar for a half-time pie and a pint?
45 min: That’s why Liverpool wanted to pay so much for Fekir.
City make problems for themselves again, losing the ball near their own area, Fernandinho the culprit this time. Fekir picks the Brazilian’s pocket and then he makes towards the City area after the ball’s played to him. He runs at City’s backtracking defence and then he lets fly with a vicious drive which skims through Stones’s legs and past the statuesque Ederson!
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GOAL! Manchester City 0-2 Lyon (Fekir, 43 min)
What a goal!
42 min: City are a mess at the back. A cross from the right is just flicked away from Depay, but it falls to Aouar, who tries to curl a cross towards the far post. Walker turns his back and deflects the shot away from goal with an outstretched arm. It should be a penalty, but the referee doesn’t see it. The ball falls to Pape Cheukh Diop, who can’t make the most of two efforts from the edge of the area.
40 min: Jesus skedaddles into the area from the left, moving into the area, and falls over a challenge from Rafael. Penalty? No! The Italian referee is on the spot and he tells Jesus to get up. A replay shows that Rafael pulled his leg away. Guardiola, in his Peaky Blinders flat cap, looks increasingly concerned in the stands.
39 min: Nothing comes from the free-kick. City have barely threatened Lyon’s goal. Maybe they should sign Jason Denayer.
38 min: Andy Carroll David Silva heads a deep ball down to Jesus, who tumbles under a challenge from Marcelo. No penalty, despite the loud appeals. The ball runs to Laporte. He dummies and shoots, but it’s blocked. Then the ball comes to Fernandinho, who’s fouled 35 yards from goal.
34 min: Delph, looking to make amends for his earlier error, has a pop from 18 yards. It hits Marcelo and almost slithers past Lopes, who adjusts well to make the save down to his right.
33 min: Lyon are menacing going forward. Fekir breaks down the left, into space vacated by Walker, and lashes a wild shot off target.
32 min: City probe down the left. Suddenly, an injection of pace. Fernandinho slots a pass through to Sterling, who takes Lopes out of the game with a cutback to Gundogan. It’s an easy finish for the City midfielder. Only one problem: Sterling was a yard offside when he raced through.
30 min: Bernardo hoists a deep cross to the far post from the right, but it’s a bit too high for Jesus, whose header loops into Lopes’s grateful hands.
28 min: There are some howls from the home fans as Bernardo and Jesus get their wires crossed on the right flank. This isn’t good from City. They’re a yard off the pace and Lyon have taken advantage.
Not for the first time, City give the ball away in midfield. Fekir plays a one-two and scoots down the left flank. Can he produce some quality? He can! A swinging cross causes some problems for City and the home side are in bother when Delph lets the ball run through his legs at the far post. Cornet’s waiting and he sweeps a fine shot low to Ederson’s right to give Lyon a shock lead!
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GOAL! Manchester City 0-1 Lyon (Cornet, 26 min)
There’s no escape for City this time!
24 min: Cornet surges through, rounds Ederson and slots the ball into the empty net. But the flag’s up for offside. Just.
21 min: Up the other end, Depay runs at Stones and wins a corner for Lyon on the left. The former Manchester United forward goes across to take it. The City fans behind the goal boo. Depay’s corner is cleared.
20 min: Sterling cuts inside from the left and shoots from 18 yards. Lopes fields his deflected effort.
19 min: A free-kick to Lyon on the right. Fekir sends it in and Diop steers a header wide.
17 min: City take the corner short and Gundogan clips a dangerous cross to the far post. Lopes is all over the place. He misreads the flight of the ball, misses it and is relieved to see Laporte head against the post from a tight angle! City are starting to turn the screw. Much to Lopes’s relief, though, Lyon’s defenders manage to hack the ball clear.
16 min: Aoaur skips past a couple of challenges in the middle and tries to slip a pass through to Depay. Laporte steps in, but the defender’s sloppy pass runs straight to Fekir, who tries to catch Ederson off his line from 40 yards. Too ambitious. Ederson catches the shot easily and City attack. Silva darts down the left and cuts a clever pass back to Sterling, who sees his firm shot blocked behind by Denayer.
15 min: Gundogan’s low corner from the right bounces to Fernandinho after being flicked on by Stones, but the Brazilian skews an awkward shot miles over.
14 min: Walker scoots down the right and earns a corner off Marcelo. It’s City’s first of the evening. They’re picking up the pace.
13 min: Sterling swings a cross into the area from the right. Marcelo heads it away from Jesus. City quickly win the ball back and look for Sterling again. He twists past Rafael, beating him all ends up, but his cross is poor.
11 min: Fernandinho dinks a ball into the area, looking for Silva. The ball’s headed to Sterling on the left of Lyon’s area. He waits it to drop and controls instead of shooting first time. Eventually he drives down the outside and fires a shot into the side-netting from a tight angle.
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9 min: Here we go, though, Delph sending Sterling haring down the left flank. However the winger’s low ball is cut out by Denayer, the former City centre-back, at the near post.
8 min: Cancel this, start it again. Nothing’s happening!
5 min: The home fans are pretty quiet, as though they’re waiting for their team to roll through the gears. It’s pretty low-key at the moment.
4 min: City haven’t quite got going yet. Lyon are seeing a lot of the ball, with Fekir prominently involved. It’s been a positive start from the visitors.
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2 min: Pep Guardiola is sitting in a box high in the stands. There’s a banner reading “City are back” above him. No word on whether he hid in a laundry basket in order to sneak into the home dressing room before the game.
Peep! Lyon, in Dutch orange, get the game underway. They’re kicking from right to left. Manchester City, whose fans booed the Champions League anthem before kick-off, are in blue shirts and white shorts.
The teams are out at the Etihad. We’ll have football soon!
The other game in this group has finished Shakhtar Donetsk 2-2 Hoffenheim, who will be delighted to pick up a point from their first ever Champions League group game. That’s not a great result for Shakhtar, who needed a late equaliser to rescue a point.
Mikel Arteta speaks! “The process has been completely similar to what we do all the time. The only difference is Pep is not with us. It is a challenge and it is very exciting as well. The main thing is the team performs and we win. Lyon are a very dynamic team. They are very strong. Technically they are very gifted. The front three are quality players. You have to make sure you pick up the points at home. In Europe to win away it is very difficult.”
Here’s Ed Aarons on Lyon’s danger man.
Manchester United legends Rafael da Silva and Memphis Depay are in the Lyon side. They’re bound to receive a pleasant welcome from the home fans.
Manchester City make three changes to the side that beat Fulham on the weekend. John Stones replaces Nicolas Otamendi, Ilkay Gundogan comes in for Leroy Sane and Sergio Aguero makes way for Gabriel Jesus up front.
Lyon make three changes to the side that drew with Caen on the weekend. Say goodbye to Lucas Tousart, Moussa Dembele and Bertrand Traore, say hello to Maxwel Cornet, Memphis Depay and Pape Cheikh Diop.
Team news
Manchester City: Ederson; Walker, Stones, Laporte, Delph; Fernandinho, Gundogan; Bernardo, Silva, Sterling, Jesus Subs: Muric, Kompany, Aguero, Sane, Mahrez, Otamendi, Foden
Lyon: Lopes; Rafael, Marcelo, Denayer, Mendy; Ndombele, Diop; Cornet, Fekir, Aouar; Depay. Subs: Gorgelin, Morel, Dubois, Ferri, Tousart, Traore, Dembele.
Referee: Daniele Orsato (Italy).
In the other game in this group, it’s Shakhtar Donetsk 1-2 Hoffenheim at half-time. It’s going to take a while to get used to these early kick-offs.
Preamble
Did you know that Pep Guardiola hasn’t won the Champions League since 2011? That’s seven years and counting! In fact, he’s never won it without Lionel Messi in his team. What a bald fraud! No wonder Manchester City aren’t going to let his bald fraudulence ruin their chances in this one. Guardiola’s been banished to the stands and that’s where he’ll have to stay all evening. You can’t be too careful.
After all, we’ve reached a situation where pointing and clapping’s Zinedine Zidane, who started his managerial career in 2015, has won this competition more times than Guardiola, the man who’s spent the past decade reinventing the wheel. Makes you think, eh? But not too much. Because the last part of the first paragraph isn’t actually true. Not entirely, anyway. For while Guardiola does have to hand over the reins to Arsenal reject Mikel Arteta for City’s opening Champions League fixture, that’s because Uefa have given him a one-match ban following his meltdown in last season’s quarter-final defeat to Liverpool.
As ever, there are shades of grey. Much as some people would like you to believe that everything’s clearcut, that isn’t really the case. Guardiola certainly underperformed in Europe with Bayern Munich, who had won the Champions League when he took over from Jupp Heynckes in 2013, and progress has been slow at City, who haven’t done much of note in this competition beyond a slightly flukey run to the last four in Manuel Pellegrini’s final season. At the same time, however, you can make the case that City are the best team in the world at the moment and that Guardiola is right when he says domestic success will always be his primary focus. Knockout football is unpredictable and City were arguably unfortunate to draw Liverpool in the last eight last season given that Jurgen Klopp has been Guardiola’s most difficult opponent in recent years.
Little moments can end meaning more than they should. Guardiola has a slew of hard luck stories to tell – Messi’s missed penalty against Chelsea in 2012, Thomas Muller’s against Atletico Madrid in 2016, Leroy Sane’s disallowed goal when the second leg against Liverpool hung in the balance – and he can argue that he hasn’t been too far off. Sometimes it’s about timing your run. As Zidane demonstrated at Real Madrid, you do’t necessarily have to be the best to win this thing.
All of which explains why Guardiola remains determined to talk up the Premier League. He won three successive titles both at Barcelona and Bayern and he knows that City will partly be judged on whether they can maintain their dominance in England. They’ve never managed it before, having allowed standards to slip after their title successes under Roberto Mancini and Pellegrini. At the same time, however, the Guardiola doubters won’t stop talking until he wins the Champions League for a third time. He hasn’t been to a final since Barcelona’s victory over Manchester United in 2011 and that’s a long barren run at this level, especially when you’ve been allowed to spend big money at all your clubs.
Still, the good news for City is that they shouldn’t have too many problems advancing from a group containing Hoffenheim, Lyon and Shakhtar Donetsk. Lyon, who are tonight’s guests at the Etihad, are seventh in Ligue 1 and have picked up one point from their last two games. They drew 2-2 with Caen last weekend and while Nabil Fekir, Moussa Dembele and Bertrand Traore will pose a threat to see City’s defence, it’s difficult to see the French side pulling off a shock result. You never know, Guardiola might even be able to relax in his seat and enjoy the view for once.
Kick-off: 8pm BST.
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