Lyonnais vs Juventus - Returning Lacazette needs time to get up to speed, says Lyon boss - 7M sport

Lyonnais vs Juventus - Returning Lacazette needs time to get up to speed, says Lyon boss



Posted Tuesday, October 18, 2016 by PA

Alexandre Lacazette will return to the starting line-up for Lyon on Tuesday night, but coach Bruno Genesio has warned his side cannot rely on the striker to fire them to victory against Juventus.

Lacazette - who has scored six goals in as many matches this season but not started since September 10 - came off the bench for the final 25 minutes of Friday's 2-0 loss to Nice in Ligue 1 after a lengthy spell out with a hamstring injury, and Genesio said his star forward will need time to get back up to speed.

"Alex is back from five weeks out and he is likely to lack match fitness," he said in a pre-match press conference. "We have to be disciplined when we lose the ball against a team that is very strong defensively, and also very good when they get on the ball."

Lyon have had a mixed start to the season, and come into the match having lost three out of their last four in all competitions, and six out of 12 this season.

"Of course our confidence isn't quite there," said captain Maxime Gonalons. "We have had a few difficulties since the start of the season.

"I think we've lost some fluency in our game compared to the second half of last season. But we're ready and we're getting players back from injury."

Juventus have injury worries of their own, having made the trip to France without Giorgio Chiellini (thigh), Claudio Marchisio (knee), Marko Mandzukic (thigh), Daniele Rugani (knee), Kwandwo Asamoah (knee) and Marko Pjaca (calf).

However, coach Massimiliano Allegri said he was not concerned by the length of his injury list.

"I'm not worried about having players out injured," he said. "That sort of thing always happens in a season and we have to deal with it."

With so many players missing, Allegri has called 16-year-old Moise Kean into his squad, and the forward could become the fourth youngest player ever to appear in the Champions League, and the first to be born in the year 2000.

"He is a good guy with quality," Allegri said of his starlet. "We have to be careful with him, but I'm certain he will benefit from this experience with the first team."

Juve top Group H, level on four points with second-placed Sevilla and one clear of Lyon in third.

They have won five in a row in all competitions, and Allegri dismissed concerns about whether or not they have been playing well while picking up victories.

"It doesn't worry me that people say Juventus aren't playing well and winning," he said. "I don't know what 'playing well' means. What matters is the result. People remember who wins titles and not who plays 'well' or not."



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