Champions League Fixture: Olympique Lyonnais vs Schalke Second Half Report
The Red Card during the half time was the turning point for both clubs as it completely changed the scenario of the match. O. Lyon with one man advantage and home advantage looked straightforward and came with the more attacking intent. Les Gones started putting pressure on the one man down visitors from the start of the second half and in the end were congratulated with a job well done.
The Germans were very weak on the attack and with a man down, there was a tactical substitution made by Schalke boss Felix Magath. The holding midfielder Ciprian Deac was substituted by a defender Joel Matip.
There were some other substitutions too, that took place during the second half. Peer Kluge came into the field in place of Jermaine Jones. The only goal scorer of the match Michel Fernandes Bastos was replaced by Jeremy Pied. Lukas Schmitz took the place for Hans Sarpei. And in the dying moment Yoann Gourcuff was substituted and Jean ll Makoun came in his place. Along with that another O. Lyon striker Jimmy Brain was replaced by Kim Kallstrom.
Without a doubt, it was one of the best attacking display Rhine Valley would have ever witnessed. The French Side were attacking quite frequently and continued to make plays form the midfield. It seemed like they came with the very attacking mind set and were determined to dominate against the visitors.
During the second half, the French side made Germans pay for the rueful red card, as they constantly attacked with pressure of having lesser obstructions. O. Lyon latest signing was one of the good performers as he managed a long range effort which gave the young German goalkeeper a tough time.
In most of the second half, Bastos mixed up with Gourcuff to provide a formidable attack. Nevertheless, strikers were also not behind in the drama as they were the lkeys in setting up balls and then receiving them again. It was a satisfactory performance from the famous striker Lisandro Lopez. He tried many times but failed to find the net. One such chance came when Gourcuff’s long through pass was well taken by Lopez but keeper managed to stop him in time.
Second half was all in favour of the French side as they attacked from the first till the last moments of the game. The fact that score still remained to 1-0 was a shocker. Despite all that attack, O. Lyon failed to score in the second half even when the Germans were one man down.
In the end all praise should be for the unsung hero, the young German goalkeeper of Schalke who saved the day for his club by conceding only one goal. No doubt. It was one of the memorable performances for the young player, under the pressure of away crowd and with one man down, Neuer confidence was not shattered as he kept his calm, resulting in only 1 goal difference, where it could easily be a difference of four to five goals.
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