Uefa Champions League Gets Return Date

Uefa Champions League Gets Return Date

By Admin

Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas has revealed the Champions League will make it's return on August 7 - the day his side take on Juventus.

The two sides were set to face off at the Allianz Stadium for their round of 16 second leg tie before the coronavirus pandemic brought football to a standstill.

But Aulas has confirmed that the two sides will go at it behind closed doors in Turin this summer.

He told RTL per Daily Mirror: "Our match against Juventus has been confirmed for August 7, it will be held in Turin behind closed doors.

"If our legal actions don't succeed (to resume the 19/20 Ligue 1 season), Lyon and Paris Saint-Germain will be massacred by teams who have had preparation."

The tie is currently 1-1 after a draw in France back in February

The last 16 clash between Manchester City and Real Madrid, which was scheduled to take place on the same day before postponement, currently has no date set.

It's unknown how the Champions League will fully return considering the uncertainty over domestic leagues across Europe.

Four different nations have already qualified for the quarter-finals with the potential for a fifth if City knock Madrid out.

Ligue 1 has been cancelled with PSG receiving the title, a decision which will leave the French sides at a disadvantage when the Champions League returns.

Lyon themselves have shown fury over the decision to cancel Ligue 1, with Les Gones being one point outside the European places with 11 games left to play.

The seven time Ligue 1 winners released a statement on their website which read:

"Olympique Lyonnais has taken note of the decision proposed by the Office of the Professional Football League and endorsed this afternoon then by its Board of Directors, to end the 2019/20 season of Ligue 1 and Ligue 2, based on the remarks made by Prime Minister Edouard Philippe during his speech at the National Assembly on the conditions of deconfinement.

"This government position did not seem to impose in a prohibitive way such a final stop today from Ligue 1 and Ligue 2, the Minister of Sports Roxana Maracineanu having previously indicated the possibility of playing in August if the evolution of the health situation allowed it.

"Olympique Lyonnais then proposed as early as Tuesday that the League study an alternative solution which would allow the Championship to be ended and thus preserve the fairness inherent in any sporting competition and to be in line with UEFA's proposals based on sporting merit according to objective, transparent and non-discriminatory principles."

They went on to congratulate PSG for their championship victory as well as Lorient for their promotion from Ligue 2.