Barcelona v Lyon: Preview and possible line-ups

TEAM NEWS

Barcelona

Ousmane Dembele and Ivan Rakitic should return to the starting line-up on Wednesday after coming on as substitutes against Rayo Vallecano. This could mean that Coutinho and Vidal may drop to the bench.

Lenglet is back from a domestic suspension so should feature in Barca's defensive line alongside Samuel Umtiti in central defence. Unsurprisingly, Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi will be preparing to start up front for the Catalan giants, while Valverde has no fresh injuries concerns to be contending with.

Lyon

Nabil Fekir, Lyon's captain, missed the first leg due to a suspension but returns for the second-leg which will be a huge boost for the visitors. He has netted 12 times and claimed seven assists across all competitions and will feature up front for Lyon.

It's possible that Genesio could play safe and opt for an extra midfielder meaning that a striker's spot could be sacrificed. This would mean that Moussa Dembele, Memphis Depay and Bertrand Traore would all battle for a spot in the starting line-up.

Depay did not feature in Lyon's Ligue 1 match at the weekend meaning that he could be the favourite to start on the wing for his team with fresh legs. Ndombele will also be under scrutiny after rumours that some big European clubs have their eye on him.

MANAGERS' THOUGHTS

Ernesto Valverde

“Nil-nil from the first leg is a result which benefits neither side because if neither of us score it will go into extra time. Lyon will come here with their weapons, they’ve got a very strong attack – very quick, powerful players up front and I’m sure they’ll try to exploit that.

“They know how important it would be for them to get an away goal tomorrow, so I’m sure they’ll look for that too.

"We’re not worrying too much about what happened a year ago, we’ve spoken enough about that. We’re just worried about tomorrow’s game."

Bruno Génésio​

"We have to be inspired by the game at Manchester City. The context will still be different tomorrow, with a player outside the norm. Everything is possible in football. We have a 34% chance of qualifying. We'll play our chances.

"Many things depend on Messi. We'll develop a game plan to reduce his influence [on the match]. The president built this club for us to be here. I don't think the match will end in a 0-0 draw.

"You have to take calculated risks. This is how we have to approach the match. The evolution of Moussa Dembele has been very positive. He needed a little time to adapt, which is normal. He continued working and he's been rewarded.

"We will have to be ready to suffer together. The presence of Nabil Fekir changes a lot of things. He brings a lot of confidence to the group."

FORM GUIDE

DID YOU KNOW?

This return leg will be the eigth time these two teams have met in competition. Barcelona have emerged victorious for four of those occasions, with the other four ending in draws.

Lyon's last trip to Barcelona was in March 2009 saw them suffer a 5-2 defeat.

POSSIBLE LINE-UPS

Barcelona

Ter Stegen; Semedo, Pique, Lenglet, Alba; Busquets, Rakitic, Arthur; Dembele, L Suarez, Messi

Lyon

Lopes; Dubois, Marcelo, Denayer, Mendy; Ndombele, Aouar, Tousart; Fekir, Dembele, Depay