Lyon mulls goalkeeper change in Europa League vs Anderlecht

Lyon kick off their Europa League campaign this Wednesday with a trip to Anderlecht and the plan, according to L’Équipe, is to rotate. The Rhone side are expected to field a revamped team depending on what happens in Ligue 1 this Saturday against Rennes.

Rotation after the Champions setback

The backdrop matters: Paulo Fonseca’s team were knocked out of the Champions League play-offs by Fenerbahçe, with the tie ending 1-1 and 1-2. In Europe, Lyon have recent experience—last season they finished first in the league phase, then were eliminated in the round of 16 by Celta Vigo (1-1, 0-2).

For the first match in this new run, Anderlecht are described by L’Équipe as fourth in their last league season and currently seventh after six matchdays. Lyon come in unbeaten in Ligue 1 and will try to show a more convincing face than their last away trip to Paris, where they drew 0-0 against PFC at Jean-Bouin. They didn’t concede, but the offensive output was flagged as lacking.

Descamps could start

L’Équipe notes that training since returning from Paris has focused on improving their attacking finishing. Corentin Tolisso—Lyon captain—said: «Offensivement, on peut faire beaucoup mieux», echoing the coach’s view that his side didn’t create enough chances. After sessions on Sunday afternoon and Monday morning, Lyon have one final training block on Tuesday at 11:00 before heading to Belgium at 17:00.

As rotation is expected in several areas, L’Équipe specifically points to Rémy Descamps as a candidate to start in goal, and also suggests Keito Nakamura could be used on the left side of the attack. Meanwhile, a first-team player like Clinton Mata may also gain minutes. Source: L’Équipe.