Despite a mixed start to the season for the Lyonnais, Glasgow Rangers coach Steven Gerrard believes that the first Europa League match on Thursday will be "a big test" for his people, against "a team that should play the Champions League ”.
Only 7th in Ligue 1 with 8 points taken in 5 days, OL have not yet reached cruising speed under the orders of their new coach, Peter Bosz.
“When a new coach comes in, it takes time to build a style of play and a system.
The players and the coach have to get used to each other, ”Gerrard said at a press conference before the start of Group A of the C3.
“Lyon has very good players, it's a big club that should be in C1.
They also have a very experienced coach and we have no illusions about the difficulty of the match we have to play tomorrow, ”added the former Liverpool midfielder.
Dembélé, usual tormentor of the Rangers, will not be there
Even the absence of Moussa Dembélé, who often martyred the Rangers when he played at Celtic (2016-2018), with 7 goals scored in 9 games, without ever losing, does not particularly reassure Gerrard.
"It would be very naive to believe that Lyon will be less strong just because they miss a player," he warned.
Bosz knows Rangers well, the coach recalled, since Bayer Leverkusen, the former team he led, eliminated the Scottish club in the round of 16 of C3 two seasons ago, with a victory 3 -1 at Ibrox Park.
The reigning Scottish champion will not present himself as an expiatory victim.
“You can always learn by playing against the best teams (…) The matches against teams like Lyon, that's what everyone wants to experience,” he noted.
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Europa League
Lyon
Jean-Michel Aulas
OL
Glasgow
Soccer
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