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Paris Saint Germain's Edinson Cavani of Argentina, left, heads the ball to score past Olympic Lyonnais goalkeeper Anthony Lopes during the French League Cup Final soccer match at the Stade de France in Saint Denis, north of Paris, Saturday April 19, 2014. (AP Photo/Jacques Brinon)
Paris Saint Germain's Edinson Cavani of Argentina, left, heads the ball to score past Olympic Lyonnais goalkeeper Anthony Lopes during the French League Cup Final soccer match at the Stade de France in Saint Denis, north of Paris, Saturday April 19, 2014. (AP Photo/Jacques Brinon)Jacques Brinon/Associated Press

Lyon vs. PSG: Team News, Predicted Line-Ups, Live Stream, TV Info

Jonathan JohnsonFeb 6, 2015

Olympique Lyonnais welcome defending champions Paris Saint-Germain to Stade Gerland on Sunday as two of Ligue 1’s top three go head-to-head.

Two points separate the pair ahead of kick-off, but Olympique de Marseille could temporarily lead going into the game depending on how they fare away at Stade Rennais on Saturday.

Date: Sunday, February 8

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Time: 8 p.m. GMT (9 p.m. CET) / 4 p.m. ET (only second half dependent on Africa Cup of Nations 2015 final)

Venue: Stade de Gerland, Lyon

TV Info: BT Sport 1 (UK), beIN Sports (USA), Canal+ (France)

Live Stream: beIN Sports CONNECT (USA)

METZ, FRANCE - AUGUST 31:  Alexandre Lacazette (L) of Lyon celebrates scoring his team's first goal with his teammates Clinton N'Jie (C) and Arnold Mvuemba (R) during the French Ligue 1 match between FC Metz and Olympique Lyonnais at Stade Saint-Symphorie

Preamble

Lyon’s draw away at AS Monaco last time out allowed PSG to close the gap to just two points, and Laurent Blanc’s men have done well to haul back the ground between themselves and Les Gones in recent weeks.

However, few can debate that Lyon are good value for their lead in Le Championnat at present, and this is a chance for them, as much as it is a chance for PSG, to deal a direct blow to their title rivals.

The game is arguably of greater importance to PSG, who can take a one-point lead over Lyon at the top of the table, than OL, who only need a draw to stay ahead of Les Parisiens. Olympique de Marseille's 1-1 draw away at Stade Rennais has opened up the top of the table for the pair.

PSG are currently in the middle of a busy schedule that has them in action seven times across all competitions in just 29 days. But Lyon, out of the Coupe de la Ligue, Coupe de France and Europe, only have Le Championnat left to play for.

Top goalscorer Alexandre Lacazette and key central defender Milan Bisevac will be missing for OL, while PSG are expected to be at full strength.

The fact that Laurent Blanc’s men have arrested an alarming run of form in recent weeks, thanks largely to a stabilised defence, makes this game’s deciding factor how Lyon boss Hubert Fournier handles the absences of Lacazette and Bisevac.

Form Lines

Lyon:PSG:
D. 0-0 vs. MonacoW. 1-0 vs. Lille OSC (Coupe de la Ligue)
W. 2-0 vs. FC MetzW. 1-0 vs. Stade Rennais
L. 3-2 vs. FC Nantes (Coupe de France)W. 1-0 vs. AS Saint-Etienne
W. 2-0 vs. RC LensW. 2-1 vs. Girondins de Bordeaux (Coupe de France)
W. 3-0 vs. Toulouse

W. 4-2 vs. Evian Thonon Gaillard

Predicted Formations

A possible Lyon starting XI vs. PSG
A possible PSG XI vs. Lyon

Player to Watch Per Side

With Lacazette out injured, the goalscoring burden for Lyon will fall on the shoulders of young and talented Nabil Fekir.

LYON, FRANCE - JULY 24:  Nabil Fekir of Olympique Lyonnais in action during the Pre Season match between Olympique Lyonnais and Real Madrid at Gerland Stadium on July 24, 2013 in Lyon, France.  (Photo by Valerio Pennicino/Getty Images)

The 21-year-old and Yassine Benzia failed to breach Monaco’s rock-solid defence in his most recent outing and did not look convincing in the absence of Les Gones’ No. 10. Although Lyon also boast a strong defence, the hosts will need to score at least once to win the game.

With eight league goals and five assists to his name already this season, that responsibility will fall to Fekir, even if he is more of a creative player.

Yoann Gourcuff could be another to step up for Fournier’s men and has the experience to make the difference in a game like this. But for Lyon to win, Fekir will be needed to play his part after that disappointing outing in Monaco.

As for PSG, the French champions have been struggling in front of goal lately.

There is a lack of creativity in the team, which was emphasised in the 1-0 Coupe de la Ligue semi-final win over Lille OSC in midweek. Argentinian playmaker Javier Pastore continued absence with a calf problem, as confirmed by PSG.fr will be sorely felt.

With El Flaco not in the squad, the creative burden will fall to the likes of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Lucas Moura. The Brazilian has been slightly off-colour for the past few weeks and will need more than just his incredible speed to cause a solid and settled Lyon midfield and defence.

The 22-year-old has scored seven league goals and laid on a further two so far this season and will be required to provide Ibrahimovic and Cavani with the ammunition necessary to down OL. Les Parisiens are in need of a convincing performance. In order for that to happen, then they will need to score more than just one goal and scrap it out to keep a clean sheet.

Key Battle

One of the most important battles in this game will be that between Bisevac’s replacement in the Lyon defence, Lindsay Rose, and PSG’s Ibrahimovic.

The super Swede has been well below his usual levels of excellence so far this season, and Bisevac, a player familiar with the talismanic No. 10 from their time together in Paris, would have known how to handle him.

However, Rose has looked off the pace in the handful of appearances he has made so far this season, yet he is expected to be thrust into the heart of what has become an extremely strong Lyon back line.

METZ, FRANCE - AUGUST 31:  Alexandre Lacazette of Lyon celebrates scoring his team's first goal during the French Ligue 1 match between FC Metz and Olympique Lyonnais at Stade Saint-Symphorien on August 31, 2014 in Metz, France.  (Photo by Kaz Photography

The talented 22-year-old’s lack of game time will benefit Ibrahimovic, as the OL man is more likely to back off him and show him respect. Therefore, perhaps this matchup is exactly what Zlatan needs to get back to something close to resembling his best.

Samuel Umtiti will do his best to keep the likes of Ibrahimovic and Cavani at bay, but PSG will almost certainly target Rose in the centre of defence and ex-Parisien Christophe Jallet on the right. As a former team-mate, Blanc’s men will be well versed on the best ways to expose the full-back.

Without Lacazette, the PSG defence has less to worry about, which means the emphasis is placed on the battle between the two midfields. The capital club are unlikely to be able to dictate the play as much as they are usually allowed to, so it is a question of how Blanc’s team bridge the gap between midfield and attack in order to get at Rose and Jallet.

Odds (Per Oddschecker)

Home win: 27/10

Away win: 5/4

Draw: 12/5

*All statistics come via Ligue1.com

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