Olympique de Lyon Soccer
Lyon moved closer to a fourth consecutive French title at the weekend and will be eager to roar again on Tuesday when they welcome Dutch side PSV Eindhoven in their Champions League quarter-final, first leg clash at Gerland. Les Gones defeated Lens 1-0 on Saturday, extending their lead in Ligue 1 over now second-placed Lille to 13 points. ``We have taken a giant step towards the title,'' declared Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas. ``Winning over Lens, who are by far the best team who have come to Gerland in the league this year, was essential because the aim was to put the players in the best possible condition ahead of the Champions League match on Tuesday.''
Lyon, who hammered German champions Werder Bremen 10-2 on aggregate in the last 16, have now reached the quarter-final stage of Europe's elite competition for the past two competitions and Aulas admits they are looking to lay the ghosts of last season's 4-2 aggregate defeat to eventual winners Porto behind them. ``This is a chance to do better than last year,'' he added.
``We know that PSV Eindhoven are a brilliant side but Olympique Lyonnais can be as brilliant. ``The preparation, the players' professionalism and the coaches' tactical imagination will be what makes the difference between both sides. ``The public will also play a role tomorrow night, considering the tremendous help they provided against Werder Bremen.'' Lyon coach Paul Le Guen, who will have a team at full strength for the clash, has urged his players not to be carried away by their success in the league and remain concentrated against the Dutch side. ``The Champions League will use a lot of our strength and energy,'' he said. ``We are going to have to be vigilant and remember that nothing's done yet. We must get the points first (in the league) and finish off the work we've accomplished in this year's tournament.'' Meanwhile, PSV coach Guus Hiddink is quite happy for his team to be considered as underdogs. ``They are favourites, 60 to 40 in my opinion,'' he said. ``Nevertheless, we still have a good chance. They play the same that way we do. That will make it an interesting game.'' Like Lyon, Hiddink's men are also on the verge of claiming their domestic league title, and the PSV coach was delighted with a weekend 2-0 victory over Utrecht after several players returned from international duty. ``We won the match without a big effort and without picking up any new injuries,'' he added. ``That is very important for us in this period of the season. We are still playing in three competitions, so we must be careful with some players.'' The Dutch coach will be hoping that history will repeat itself. In 1988 PSV beat French side Bordeaux in the last eight of the European Cup under Hiddink, before going on to lift the trophy thanks to a penalty shoot-out win against Benfica in the final. Hiddink will be delighted with a similar story this time around, but he know it won't be easy.
``Everybody knows how we play,'' he added. ``That cannot be a surprise. We do not have a team that can defend for the whole match. ``I think the midfield will be very important, like always. With Mark van Bommel and Phillip Cocu we have two experienced and strong players. They can make the difference. ``After the weekend match everybody is still fit. John de Jong is the only one still injured - I hope he will be back again in a few weeks. We will need him with so many matches to play.''