Olympique Lyonnais knew they were facing an uphill battle against German giants Bayern Munich in their Champions League semi-final, and in the end, it just proved to be one step too far as Bayern ran out 3-0 winners in Portugal.
The hype behind the favourites was fully justified in the first half as they raced into a 2-0 lead, although Lyon did have their fair share of chances early on. Then, with just minutes remaining, star striker Robert Lewandowski sealed the win and set his side up for one hell of a showdown in the final.
A run to be proud of
Despite finishing outside of the top six in the shortened Ligue 1 season, Lyon truly did give a phenomenal account of themselves in this season’s Champions League. They were tight at the back, and up top, they had a handful of danger men that were always capable of causing the opposition problems. It shouldn’t be forgotten that they were able to knock both Juventus and Manchester City out in this campaign, and we hope that they’re able to claw their way back to the big time sooner rather than later.
Gnabry’s resurgence
A few years ago, Serge Gnabry was considered to be the kind of player that wasn’t even capable of playing for West Bromwich Albion on loan from Arsenal. Now, he’s announced himself to the world as one of the most underrated players in European football. After terrorising London clubs this season he proved himself to be one of Bayern’s main men all over again, scoring twice in the semi. The first goal, by the way, was an absolutely remarkable strike that we can only imagine former club legend Arjen Robben would’ve been proud of.
Living up to the hype
When you absolutely batter Barcelona 8-2 in the quarter-finals, a certain expectation falls on your shoulders from that point on – and, we’d argue, rightly so. Bayern were looked upon as the team that would be able to stroll through to the final, but they were aware of the fact that City and Juve had also come unstuck at the hands of Lyon. They took their time, rode out any waves of pressure, and made sure that they stuck to the game plan. They lived up to their goalscoring hype, and we sincerely hope that the history books remember them as the great side they truly are.
PSG in the final
There’s one more game left to go for Bayern Munich this season and it will come against Paris Saint-Germain in the 2020 UEFA Champions League Final this weekend. These two clubs were arguably the strongest left in the competition on either side of the draw, and yet if anything, that makes us even more excited. It’s nice to see underdogs make their way through to the final every now and then, but it’s also absolutely wonderful to see two juggernauts of the game trading blows until one is crowned the Champions of Europe. In terms of the bookmakers, 888sport currently has the Germans as the clear 21/20 favourites to get the job done.
Fighting for the fans?
Not everyone is going to be a huge fan of the way Bayern Munich operate, but for the majority, anything is better than the level of sheer corruption that we’ve seen within the ranks of PSG in recent years. You have to spend money to succeed in football which we all know, but the owners of the French club have been associated with a string of allegations that leave many hoping that they falter into obscurity. Regardless of whether or not that happens, Bayern will be the people’s choice on Sunday.
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