Fonseca backs Lyon to make history against Fenerbahçe in Champions play-off

Paulo Fonseca showed optimism ahead of Lyon's Champions League play-off clash against Fenerbahçe this Tuesday (21:00), speaking to the media with clear conviction about his team's chances in Istanbul.

The Lyon boss highlighted the work done during the week leading up to the tie. "We've trained very well these past few days. The team has improved and is stronger than in recent weeks", Fonseca said, according to L'Équipe. He stressed his expectations for "a stronger, braver and more focused Lyon" in the Turkish capital.

A historic opportunity

Fonseca acknowledged what this play-off means for the Ligue 1 side. "This is an excellent opportunity for us. Getting into the Champions League would be historic for this club. We're not the team of the past that played this competition regularly. Today we're a different club, facing greater difficulties than back then", he explained.

On tactics, the Portuguese manager made clear Lyon won't go to Istanbul purely to survive. "We're not here to defend for 90 minutes. We know it's a great team and it will be difficult, but we must have the courage to play our game", Fonseca assured, also defending his summer signings—Bidstrup, Athekame and Bacher—as positive options to provide solutions.