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Did Mourinho aim for the draw or was he playing to win? That question remained unanswered as Real Madrid managed to score against Lyon in France for the first time in four matches as hometown hero Karim Benzema continued his Super Sub antics, scoring the opener for Real Madrid a minute after coming in for Adebayor, with a little bit of luck. Lyon’s substitutions, adding more pressure through the wings on the Spanish club got the desired goal at the end through Bafetimbi Gomis’ goal at the 83rd minute and the match ended with a 1-1 draw.
Real looked very slow and stagnant through the first half, as Cristiano Ronaldo, triple teamed constantly when with the ball, seemed to be all alone in an attempt to break the Lyon curse. Not that the French side were brilliant, but they seemed like the more dangerous side, using the affect Stade de Gerland has on the Blancos.
The second half was a different story, with Madrid looking much more in the midst of things. Ronaldo sent a free kick to the post, Sergio Ramos’ header rattled the crossbar, but eventually it was Karim Benzema, welcomed with a standing ovation from the home fans, who scored the opening goal, adding a speed dimension that was missing while Adebayor led the strike force.
Gomis had a terrible match in my opinion, but strikers are measured by the amount of goals they score, and Gomis did the job on this particular night, giving Lyon a chance for the second leg at the Bernabeu. Last word to Puel – No reason to start with Delgado and Kallstrom. Pjanic has already proven himself against Real Madrid at the Bernabeu once, and is a much more suitable player for this kind of match (and generally better I believe). For Lyon’s sake, I hope he gets the start against Real.
Bottom line – Mourinho got a good result for a two leg clash. Real didn’t show a lot of style and as usual, were over reliant on Cristiano Ronaldo, a game plan which a good defensive team can easily disrupt. Still, this was the first time they came away with an advantage from Lyon, and that’s called ‘Mission accomplished’ in my books. Style? A champions league trophy at the end of the year will quiet talks about style.
6 responses to “Champions League – Late Gomis Equalizer Gives Lyon Chance Against Real Madrid”
Agree with you 100% about Miralem Pjanic. He is the type of player that can change a match in an instant. Don’t know what’s wrong with this bloke Puel. Funny tactics for a home match.
@Sam It’s not that Lyon played badly, but Real, with all of the superstars and flair, is still a fragile team and has major problems when playing at the Gerland. Kallstrom may be a better passed than Pjanic, but the young Bosnian is a better player, clear as daylight.
Didn’t see the game but wanted to say a thing about Pjanic. For me, the best midfield player in that team is Kallstrom. If pjanic is a sub it’s because all of his game were bad. He’s still very young and need to improve a lot ! A LOT !
He’s got a major weakness, he’s weak physicly and in ligue1, you better be strong & powerfull.
Delgado is actually a very good player but was injured a lot this season.
No one expects Pjanic to be a starter, specially when there’s Gourcuff/Kallstrom.
But Pjanic can shoot freekick, and he’s already very talented. He probably had Juninho for a teacher.
I’ll give you that, he can improve a lot and hopefuly he’ll take Juninho place soon enough and Lyon really needs a playmaker of that level.
Gomis is in top form and i’m happy for him because he comes from St Etienne (Lyon worst/best ennemy) and he was “boooo” all the time.
@Sando – As usual, great to get your input mate. I don’t watch that much Ligue 1, but whenever I see Pjanic I think he’s a great player in the making. About Gomis – He is a physical presence but lacks a lot of basics. Still, he did get the goal so nothing really matters. Real have a lot of problems if the game develops in a similar fashion at the Bernabeu.
Yeah, Ligue1 isn’t a popular championship and ligue1 games are probably rare on foreign TV (unlike premiere League or serie A).
For me, Lyon is like Manchester United (not as good ofc).
This season, both team are boring to watch but they get the job done.
Lyon can thanks their goalkeeper who is , IMO, world class. He deserve and must play in a top european club.
Lloris, best french keeper. Definelty amoung the very best GK in europe and he’s still very young.
I agree, Gomis is a powerfull striker but has a few weakness. He proved that he has a good spirit and incredible determination. Like I said not easy to move from St Etienne to Lyon (like it’s hard to move from Manchester united to Liverpool)
@Sando I totally agree on Lloris, one of the top 5 keepers in the world today. According to rumors, he’s the man to inherit Van Der Sar’s spot at United