Special envoy to Lyon
Busy schedule for OL. President Aulas' players will face their neighbors in Saint-Etienne on Sunday, then PSG on March 4. But first, place at Juventus, Wednesday (9 p.m.), at Groupama Stadium, in the knockout stages of the Champions League. Turinese who "are used to winning and not many weak points" according to Rudi Garcia, the Lyon coach, interviewed this Tuesday at a press conference.
The coronavirus : "An impact on preparation? No. They were not taken into account. I am focused on the field. Appropriate people should be left to deal with this serious matter. Whether at the club or outside, because he says a lot of things. We'll see what happens, if Juve supporters can come or not. But again, we are focused on the preparation of the match, the pitch, nothing else. ”
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Juve eliminated in 8th last year : “In 8th, there are only great teams. We all thought that Liverpool would win on Atlético, or PSG in Dortmund. In the end, they didn't do it because they played good teams. It is up to us to be at our maximum, and it will be necessary to make a good result already on the way. And let's hope they are not 100%. When there is a stronger team than the other, and it is the case, Juve is favorite, it is necessary to be at the best level to thwart the forecasts. And God knows that there are not many people who give us possible qualifications ... We have to trust ourselves and give everything on the ground. But I'm not too worried about the motivation of my players ... "
"You will have to be at the top in all areas, mental, tactical, technical and physical"
Lyon capable of transcending themselves : "An 8th against Juve, it makes you want ... In addition, we have a pretty incredible week, which proves the greatness of this club, of OL. It's still a week as we wish to play it each season ... You will have to be 100% motivated. Afterwards, it will be necessary to be able to prevent this Juve from developing her forces and to cause her problems. If we just defend, we won't win. There is an important element: we will be at home, in front of our audience. We will help the 12th man to find resources, strengths. 120%? I do not know what that means. But 100%, I know. You will have to be on top in all areas, mental, tactical, technical and physical. If the players have already transcended themselves this season? We did not lose everything, otherwise, we would not be in the 8th Champions League, the final of the Coupe de la Ligue and the final of the Coupe de France. If we talk about the championship, we have to come back. There have been big matches for my team before I got there and again since I got there. ”
From the apprehension about the great Juve: "There are similarities between the two clubs. Already the quality of the presidents. Juve has its own stadium, in full ownership. It is a club where the president has been in place for a long time and where the institution is strong. We see it because even when great players arrive, and this is the case almost every year, they still blend in with what Juve represents in terms of play and attitude. Here, President Aulas has made the club one of the few who own their stadium. He was visionary in this sense. Afterwards, OL's goal, each year, is to make great seasons and try to win titles. We are not at the point of being able to win the C1, even if in football, we never know what can happen. For Juventus, however, that is the goal. The arrival of Cristiano Ronaldo is part of this quest to win the C1 for the first time since 1996. Like PSG, Juve wants to win the C1. It increases the level of competitiveness of this team and of the two matches in this double confrontation. ”
The warning shot by supporters in recent days : “My president, Jean-Michel Aulas, and my sports director, Juninho, spoke on this subject. I don't have much to add ... We were a little surprised because we thought they were coming to encourage us, charge us up, as the players are already for these three matches. We are going to give the best of ourselves (Wednesday) for 95 minutes. ”
Cristiano Ronaldo : “The best thing to talk about is Anthony Lopes, who knew him in the Portuguese selection. And Antho is not surprised at what he does at that age, because he is a great professional. It's always very interesting for football to have players of this level. He is obviously one of the best players on the planet. It's great to have him in front of us even if we will try to make him less misery than others. But you can't have an anti-Ronaldo plan. In this case, you also need an anti-Dybala plan, another anti-Higuain ... There are too many good players on this team to solve problems individually. We will have to resolve them collectively. ”
"The notion of pleasure is very important"
The tactical scheme : “We used a slightly different system in Metz (3-4-3), it will not be the same tomorrow. But there were certain peculiarities in this match, notably with the integration of Bruno Guimaraes and the return of Léo Dubois. It was also a configuration to put them in good conditions to return or enter this team. The most important thing is that the players are able to animate the system in which we play well and to have a tactical culture necessary to respond as best as possible to pose problems for the opponent and adapt to the opposing forces function of the system. "
Take pleasure in a gloomy context : “The context is not gloomy internally. The group lives well, the players get along well, live well. It has to be found on the ground through strong relationships, and a strong desire, as in Metz, to win. But it's exciting, very motivating to play these three games at home. The notion of pleasure is very important. We will have to enjoy attacking, racing the game and, I hope, having crazy moments to shake them up. And the pleasure of defending together, being coherent, united, motivated. You have to play as a team against a team of this level. ”
The next two more important matches : “We don't have priority in competitions. The priority is Juve, because I always put priority on the match to come. If there is a priority, it is to return to the podium in the championship. Afterwards, a derby arrives on Sunday. But it's too early to talk about it. Same thing for PSG, we will again be an outsider. It is rather that which must be put forward, that Juve is favorite of this double confrontation. The beauty of football is also that it is not always the strongest who win. It's up to us to play our luck head on and to leave Groupama Stadium with our heads held high, having given everything. This is how we can hope to achieve a good result. ”
Assessment of the workforce : “I had to study the workforce twice, arriving and after the injuries (Memphis, Reine-Adélaïde, Dubois ...). We are all internally motivated, we all want to prove to ourselves that we can cope well with such a team. We want to crunch to the fullest in this event and have fun playing these matches. And we will have to sell our skin dearly. ”
Comments gathered at a press conference
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