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Italian champions Juventus are set to host Olympique Lyon at the Allianz Stadium in the second leg of their UEFA Champions League Round of 16 tie on Friday night.
Maurizio Sarri's men fell to a 1-0 defeat in the first leg in France after a dire performance from the visitors. After a string of notable exits in the recent past, particularly in the quarter-final stage, Juventus would hope to overturn this deficit in the second leg to progress in the competition.
Since that defeat, the Old Lady went on to pick up their ninth consecutive Serie A title, and their first under Sarri. Cristiano Ronaldo found a dangerous vein of form that saw him score 21 league goals since the turn of the year. He could be the key figure as Juve plot a comeback.
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The away side, on the other hand, missed out on qualifying for next season's UCL after Ligue 1 was called off early due to fears of COVID-19. Rudi Garcia's men would hope to make headlines by dumping a marquee name out of the tournament.
A goal from Lucas Tousart in the first half was enough to allow Lyon to register a crucial home win for the French club in the first leg. With Memphis Depay also expected to return to the side and a one-goal advantage in their favour, the visitors will look to keep Ronaldo, Paulo Dybala, and the rest of Juve's star cast of attackers at bay.
Juventus vs Lyon Head to head
The French and Italian clubs haven't locked horns too often, but on the last six occasions they have met including the first leg, Juventus have emerged victorious four times. The remaining fixture was a 1-1 draw played in November 2016.
Complacency caught up with Sarri's men as they ended the campaign on a poor note after lifting the title, with two losses to Cagliari and AS Roma. The former was their first loss in nine years away to Cagliari, and Juve have won there in each of their last eight title-winning campaigns.
Lyon returned to competitive action with a fixture against French champions Paris Saint-Germain in the Coupe de la Ligue final. They lost on penalties after an encouraging 120 minutes of resilient football in preparation for this tie.
Juventus UCL Form Guide: W-W-W-W-W-L
Lyon UCL Form Guide: W-L-W-L-D-W
Juventus vs Lyon Team News
The Old Lady will be without the services of Mattia De Sciglio and Douglas Costa for Olympique Lyon's visit in Turin as they both have been ruled out via injury. Paulo Dybala did not feature on the final day of the campaign with a thigh issue which he could potentially shake off in time for this tie. Should he not recover in time, Gonzalo Higuain could be given the nod in attack.
Garcia's men have been boosted by the return of star man Memphis Depay, who is expected to be drafted back into the lineup. The Dutchman was on the sidelines for a lengthy spell but has fully recovered from the injury and is raring to go. His compatriot Kenny Tete and defender Marcelo are major doubts for the French club.
25-year-old Youssouf Kone and the hero of the first leg, Tousart, will both be unavailable as well. The former is out via injury while the latter has already moved onto his new club, Hertha Berlin.
Juventus vs Lyon Predicted XIs
Juventus Predicted XI: Wolciech Szczesny; Juan Cuadrado, Leonardo Bonucci, Matthijs de Ligt, Alex Sandro; Rodrigo Bentancur, Miralem Pjanic, Adrien Rabiot; Federico Bernardeschi, Paulo Dybala, Cristiano Ronaldo.
Lyon Predicted XI: Anthony Lopes; Leo Dubois, Jason Denayer, Joachim Andersen, Fernando Marcal; Houssem Aouar, Bruno Guimaraes, Thiago Mendes; Maxwel Cornet, Memphis Depay, Moussa Dembele.
Juventus vs Lyon Prediction
Juventus have lost three out of their last four games, and although it was mostly down to complacency after having already won the title, they do not look in the greatest of form. However, they do have the edge over Lyon having played more competitive football in recent weeks. The pedigree on display in the Bianconeri's XI, along with the dangerous and in-form Cristiano Ronaldo spearheading their attack, Juve would look to navigate past a tricky Lyon. Depay and co are fearless, but the Italian champions could prove to be too tall an order for them.
Prediction: Juventus 2-0 Olympique Lyon
