Lyon will entertain seventh-placed Auxerre at the Parc Olympique Lyonnais in their upcoming Ligue 1 fixture on Wednesday.
The home team dropped points for the first time this season in their previous outing as they were held to a 1-1 draw by 10-man Reims. Substitute Moussa Dembélé rescued a point from them with the equalizing goal in the 86th minute after Junya Ito gave Reims a lead in the 24th minute.
Newly promoted Auxerre have seen an uptick in their form as they are undefeated in their last three games after an opening day defeat against Lille. Their narrow 1-0 win over Strasbourg at home last time around was their second win in a row.
Lyon are in fourth place in the league standings while Auxerre are in seventh place, though they are only separated by goal difference, with both sides having seven points to their name.
Lyon vs Auxerre Head-to-Head
The two sides have crossed paths 53 times across all competitions and this will be their first meeting since the 2011-12 campaign. The hosts have a better record in these meetings against their northern rivals, with 25 wins to their name.
AJA are lagging slightly behind in the head-to-head record with 15 wins, while the remaining 13 games have ended in draws. Lyon were able to secure a league double when the two sides last met in the 2011-12 Ligue 1 season.
Lyon form guide (all competitions): D-W-W
Auxerre form guide (all competitions): W-W-D-L
Lyon vs Auxerre Team News
Lyon
There are no fresh absentees for Los Gones as Julian Pollersbeck, Jerome Boateng, Sinaly Diomande, and Houssem Aouar are sidelined with injuries and Anthony Lopes serves his third and final suspension.
Injured: Julian Pollersbeck, Jerome Boateng, Sinaly Diomande, Houssem Aouar
Doubtful: None
Suspended: Anthony Lopes
Unavailable: None
Auxerre
M'Baye Niang was sent off just minutes into his debut for the club against Montpellier and will serve the second and last of his two-game suspension here. Meanwhile, Nuno da Costa returns from a suspension of his own.
Theo Pellenard is a long-term absentee after an ACL injury, while Julian Jeanvier is out for at least six weeks following an ankle injury against Montpellier. Gaëtan Charbonnier is also out with a leg injury.
Injured: Theo Pellenard, Julian Jeanvier, Gaëtan Charbonnier
Doubtful: None
Suspended: M'Baye Niang
Unavailable: None
Lyon vs Auxerre Predicted XIs
Lyon (4-3-3): Remy Riou; Damien Da Silva, Malo Gusto, Castello Lukeba, Nicolás Tagliafico; Maxence Caqueret, Corentin Tolisso, Johann Lepenant; Tetê, Karl Toko Ekambi, Alexandre Lacazette
Auxerre (4-1-4-1): Benoit Costil; Paul Joly, Jubal, Alexandre Coeff, Quentin Bernard; Birama Toure; Gauthier Hein, Youssouf M'Changama, Hamza Sakhi, Gaëtan Perrin; Lassine Sinayoko
$1,100 First Bet Insurance at Caesars
Lyon vs Auxerre Prediction
Lyon played out a draw in their first away game of the season last time around and will be looking to return to winning ways at home. Auxerre have recorded back-to-back wins with a one-goal margin and look in good touch at the moment.
While much has changed since the last meeting between the two teams roughly a decade ago, given their form, a draw is likely to ensue.
Prediction: Lyon 1-1 Auxerre