He is back ! Karim Benzema, trained at Olympique Lyonnais, returns to his region this Tuesday evening for the very important match of the French team in Décines (Rhône) against Finland. This will be the opportunity for the Real Madrid player to set foot on Groupama Stadium for the first time. An event, inevitably, for all the Lyon supporters present in a sold-out stadium. More than 58,000 spectators will take their seats inside OL. The Décines stadium has already hosted the Blues twice, in the round of 16 of Euro 2016 against Ireland (2-1) and then in 2018, in a friendly against the United States (1-1).
“We would be happy to see Karim illuminate this evening by scoring at least one goal, supports Thomas, a 33-year-old Lyon supporter. It’s good to see him again. He is very attached to the city and to the club. He often comes back to town as soon as he has some free time. “The Merengue striker evolved in Lyon from 1997 to 2009.” He is a star here, everyone loves him, it is as important as Zinédine Zidane, lists Abdel, a 24-year-old driver living in Lyon dressed in ‘a jersey of the Blues. Benzema has proven himself at Real and he is one of the rare players of the France team to have succeeded in his Euro (4 goals). “
“We must ensure a great atmosphere”
Beyond the return of Karim Benzema, the meeting is extremely important in view of the first place and the direct ticket to Qatar. “Since the World Cup, we have a defense in the works, the results are not good and that should strain the atmosphere and reduce the cohesion of the group, thinks Hervé, the president of the group of supporters of the French Irresistibles. There is a form of frustration when we look at the composition of the France team with players who play in the best clubs in the world. Normally, there is no photo with our opponents but we feel that they keep some under the pedal. We must ensure a great atmosphere tonight to put the players in good conditions. “
“We will support the players, I hope this meeting will remove any doubts,” adds Céline, a Parisian who made the trip by car this afternoon. Coming from Dunkirk with fifteen friends, Yannick remains positive. “I have complete confidence. Benzema will be over-motivated by his return to Lyon. I think they’re going to put out the right game. There will be an atmosphere of madness, as in Strasbourg. A full stadium. We have to raise our level of play. “
