16 October 2006, by Sean Gillen

Tiago hits the target as Lyon scrape win

Lyon 2-1 St Etienne

Portuguese midfielder Tiago was once again on the scoresheet as a late Juninho goal earned Lyon the share of the spoils in a closely contested local derby at the Stade Gerland. The result sees the champions extend their lead at the top of Ligue 1 to five points.

Lyon were without Brazilian striker Fred, as well as his understudy John Carew, leaving Gerard Houllier with little choice but to use youngster Karim Benzema as the central striker, and the champions appeared to lack a cutting edge in the final third in the first period.

As a result, a lively first half was very short on chances, with Juninho’s curling shot from a Govou layoff that narrowly missed the target the nearest either side came to breaking the deadlock. St Etienne went into the game with just one win in their last four games, but Les Verts more than matched their opponents and were good value for the 0-0 scoreline at half time.

The second half was far more eventful, and Lyon gave a sign of their intentions when Tiago shot wide twice inside the first five minutes of the second period. St Etienne also went close when a sweeping counter attack saw Colombian midfielder Freddy Guarin through on goal, but the youngster could only shoot straight at Vercoutre.

Classy Tiago finish

A typical long-range free-kick from midfielder Juninho forced Janot into a double-handed save shortly after, and the Brazilian then set up Tiago to open the scoring for the home side. The Brazilian picked up a loose ball on the edge of the box and slid through the Portuguese, who kept his nerve to produce a wonderful finish, lifting the ball over the onrushing Janot.

However, the visitors took just two minutes to respond when Yohann Hautcoeur’s shot from the edge of the penalty area took a deflection off Lyon defender Eric Abidal and looped over Vercoutre. Substitute Florent Malouda then crossed for an unmarked Juninho to head straight at Janot for Lyon.

Tiago was then replaced by midfielder Kim Kallstrom, and the change worked as the Swede sent a wonderful ball over the St Etienne defence to put Malouda through on goal, with Diatta bundling the winger over for a penalty. Replays showed that the offence probably took place outside the box, but the defender was sent off before Juninho’s penalty was well saved by Janot.

Just as it appeared that Les Verts were to leave with a point, Juninho scored the all-important winner with two minutes remaining. Some determined wing play from Malouda saw the French international find Juninho completely unmarked from close range, and the Brazilian side footed a simple finish past Janot, who reacted furiously with his defence.

The result is the perfect boost for Lyon ahead of their trip to Ukraine to take on Dynamo Kiev in the Champions League. With six points already on the board, a win on Tuesday night would see the French champions with one foot in the next round after just three games.

Lyon:
Vercoutre, Cris, Reveillere, Squillaci, Abidal, Toulalan, Tiago (Kallstrom, 80), Juninho, Govou (Malouda, 56) Benzema, Wiltord (Remy, 73)
Yellow Cards: Juninho (88)

St Etienne:
Janot, Hognon, Camara, Diatta, Itlunga, Dernis (Sall, 86), Feindouno (Bilos, 70), Hautcoeur, Guarin (Heinz, 89), Ilan, Piquionne
Yellow Cards: None
Red Cards: Diatta (82)

Goals:
[1-0] Tiago, 65
[1-1] Hautcoeur, 67
[2-1] Juninho, 88