Champions League opener – Lyon

With little time, it’s a brief one, as I intended to complete & post this yesterday…

v Lyon

Etihad Stadium

Predicted line-up, subs and outcome:

(Number correct from starting line-up in the last game: 8/11).

____________________Jesus____________________

Sane__________________________________Sterling

___________D. Silva__________B. Silva___________

_________________Fernandinho_________________

Delph__________________________________Walker

____________Laporte_______Otamendi___________

___________________Ederson___________________

Subs: Muric, Kompany, Stones, Danilo, Gundogan, Mahrez, Aguero.

Ederson the obvious choice in net.

Although a slight doubt himself at one stage, injury otherwise possibly sees Fabian selected for left-wing back. Kyle to ‘go again’ on the other defensive flank and I’m going for our manager to stick with a centre-2 pairing of Aymeric & Nicholas, following a good display / partnership last Saturday.

Fernandinho to start again (we’ll need to look at giving him a replacement-rest at some stage) in front of those; Leroy, David, Bernardo & Raheem to, likewise, have another go ‘from the off’ ahead of him.

With some ankle-issue doubts over his fellow striking-colleague, I’m going for a start for Gabriel.

Aro the back-up stopper; Vinny & John make up central defensive options from the side. It sounded like Danilo might be ready for the bench should Kyle need a rest if the game suits and, similarly, if Fabian does or needs to move into midfield; Ilkay, Riyad & Sergio make up the more attacking options from ‘the 7’.

Notable absences:

-       Claudio Bravo – Injured, long-term and possibly the rest of the season.

-       Benjamin Mendy – Not quite ready following a knock or muscle injury in training last week.

-       Oleksandr Zinchenko – Not selected (might consider himself unlucky with the possible return of the more experienced Danilo).

-       Phil Foden: Not selected.

-       Kevin De Bruyne: Injured for around another 7 to 8 weeks.

Pep also sitting in the stands for this one, following a European touch-line ban…

Do I agree with Pep’s (predicted) line-up?

Looks fine to me!

Result? I have absolutely no knowledge of Lyon beyond the fact that they’re French; they sit 7^th in their league of 20 with 2 wins, 1 draw and 2 defeats and with 6 goals for and 4 against. They also have a predominantly white home kit and a largely navy blue away one. There ya go – I have no idea about their players or their style of play without doing some research…which I’m simply not gonna do.

So, the answer to how I think we’ll do tomorrow night against Lyon should come with the answer, “I have no idea”. But I’d say that 3^rd in the Premier League v 7^th in Ligue 1 is a good basis to start from and although I’m sure it’ll be tough at times, as a lot of European games can be (even those fixtures which, on paper, appear easier), I think we’ll start this run of group-stage games with a win.

Last season’s, corresponding pre-match prediction and result…

Prediction: N/A

Result: N/A

Expected weather conditions during the game: Even though, at around 13/14C, it’s not exactly gonna be a really chilly night, it’s gonna feel worse with possible-damp conditions; fuelled also by a hefty breeze all before, during and after the game. It’s definitely a 'swap from Summer jackets to Autumn coats' for fans attending this one. As for the players, less ‘ball in air’ time would be a good idea in those blustery conditions.