While Paris Saint-Germain has been prepping for upcoming key fixtures by scheduling friendlies, Olympique Lyonnais is also doing the same. They recently picked up a loss against Rangers and a win over Scottish powerhouse Celtic FC.
Following the recent coronavirus shutdown, Lyon certainly needs the preparation games to get ready for the Coupe de la Ligue final against PSG later this month. Among the team’s players, Memphis Depay is the one who needs them the most.
The Dutch striker tore his ACL last December and has not featured in an official game since then. The injury was slated to rule him out for the rest of the season. But due to the months-long suspension in play, Depay has successfully recovered from the injury just in time for the team’s season-defining fixtures.
Following Lyon’s friendly win against Celtic FC, Depay spoke to RMC Sport about his recovery and confirmed that he will be available against PSG in the cup final.
“The final against PSG, yes I’m ready,” Depay said. “I played my first match three weeks ago, I’m working hard. At the start, I was aiming for the Euro, now I work a lot for the playoffs [Champions League]. I work hard, I’m happy to be able to play again. Even if, as a team, we have to talk and stay focused.”
Before the injury, Depay was off to a strong start to the season, scoring 14 goals in 18 appearances in all competitions, including two against RB Leipzig in the UEFA Champions League group stage. Depay’s road to recovery has been a challenging one following the season-altering injury, and he spoke about his ambition to get back in game-ready shape.
“I’m very tired,” Depay said. “After six months without playing, I need that, I need to play games to get back in shape. We bounced back well from the last game. We have to focus on that but it was pretty good.”
The Coupe de la Ligue final is scheduled for July 31 in what will be the last game in the tournament’s history.
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