Europa League | League Stage

Oct 24, 2024 at 8pm UK

Parc Olympique Lyonnais

Lyon vs Besiktas

Match preview

After a disappointing start to the season that put Sage's job security in doubt, Lyon have made a remarkable turnaround, seemingly overnight.

After a run of just one win in six games, they've gone on a five-game winning streak. Their 4-0 win over Le Havre on Sunday moved them to within just a point of the Champions League places. That's a huge turnaround from just a few weeks ago when they were in the relegation zone.

Two wins from two at the start of their Europa League campaign might just be what's been needed to kickstart this impressive run. The first victory in that sequence came on matchday one against Olympiacos.

Lyon followed that up with a 4-1 win against Rangers in Glasgow last time out. Striker Alexandre Lacazette moved into fifth place in the all-time Europa League scoring charts with 24 goals after a brace at Ibrox.

The hosts are tipped to make it three from three here too. Lyon have lost only one of their 26 Europa League group stage games, and they've avoided defeat in all 13 of their home games in this stage of the competition.

OL also came out on top against Besiktas in their only previous encounter. They were paired together in the quarter-finals of the UEL back in 2016-17, winning on penalties after the aggregate score was tied at 3-3.

It might be tough for Besiktas to avenge that defeat seven years on, even though they've been playing well at home. They're struggling to get going on the continent.

A 5-0 win over rivals Galatasaray in the Super Cup, netting eight goals in their qualifier against Lugano and taking 20 points from a possible 24 so far in the Super Lig looks like a great start to the season for Giovanni van Bronckhorst's team.

However, Besiktas are at the bottom of the Europa League standings after losing 4-0 to Ajax and having a disappointing performance at home to Eintracht Frankfurt on matchday two.

There's reason to be optimistic, too. Van Bronckhorst took his Rangers side all the way to the final of this competition back in the 2021-22 season, despite losing their opening two games.

However, like many Turkish clubs, Besiktas have struggled away from home in this competition, losing four games in a row and conceding 15 goals. They've also lost eight of their last nine games across all venues.

BJK haven't had much luck in France, with four losses in their last five visits to the country.

Recent Performance

Lyon Europa League form:WW

Lyon form (all competitions):LWWWWW

Besiktas Europa League form:DWLL

Besiktas form (all competitions):WLWLDW

Team News

Lyon will be able to call upon Duje Caleta-Car again here after he served a domestic suspension over the weekend, and it looks like the Croatian centre-back will start alongside Moussa Niakhate.

Clinton Mata made a speedy recovery from injury and played at the back in Caleta-Car's absence on Sunday. He could move to a more natural right-back role in this one, replacing Ainsley Maitland-Niles.

Nemanja Matić is currently out with a back issue and Wilfried Zaha was left out once again by Pardew after also missing the Nantes game before the international break due to a disciplinary issue.

Besiktas are set to be without winger Milot Rashica after he was forced off early in Kosovo's win over Cyprus just over a week ago, so Van Bronckhorst will have been pleased to see Rafa Silva back in the goals in the 2-0 win over Konyaspor at the weekend, ending a seven-game scoring drought.

Al Musrati was back in action after a thigh injury, but Necip Uysal and Gabriel Paulista are still out. Paulista picked up a thigh issue just before half-time.

Goalkeeper Ersin Destanoglu made his first appearance in the loss to Frankfurt on matchday two, but he hasn't been part of any matchday squad since. He's also been out with a thigh injury.

Possible starting lineups

Lyon possible starting lineup:

Lucas Perri; Clinton Mata, Caleta-Car, Niakhate, Tagliafico; Veretout, Tolisso; Benrahma, Cherki, Fofana; Lacazette

Besiktas possible starting lineup:

Gunok; Svensson, Uduokhai, Topcu, Masuaku; Ndour, Gedson Fernandes; Rafa Silva, Muci, Kilicsoy; Immobile