2008-03-07 17:40:43 -
PARIS (AP) - Having failed to reach the Champions League quarterfinals for the second straight season, French champion Lyon is in danger of losing its customary grip on the domestic title if loses to Bordeaux on Sunday.
Bordeaux is only three points behind and will pull level if it wins at Lyon's Stade Gerland.
Not since Lyon
overcame a 10-point deficit to overtake Monaco in the closing rounds of the 2003-04 season has the French league title been so closely contested, and the pressure is starting to tell on the six-time champion.
«We don't have much of a lead,» Lyon winger Sidney Govou said ahead of the 28th round. «Bordeaux is pressuring us and I can tell you we will play this match flat out.
Midfielder Jeremy Toulalan fears the team may be tired after Tuesday's 1-0 loss to Manchester United, giving the Red Devils a 2-1 aggregate victory. Bordeaux was already eliminated from the UEFA Cup and did not play midweek.
«We will see if the team can get over it (the defeat to United) in order to concentrate on the objectives ahead of us,» Toulalan said. «I am worried about tiredness. The Bordeaux players will be fresh, in good form.
Bordeaux has shown some clinical form to catch up with Lyon, following up a 6-0 win at Monaco with a 3-0 victory over struggling Paris Saint-Germain last weekend.
Midfielder Wendel scored three goals against PSG to take his tally to nine, Fernando Cavenaghi has eight and David Bellion has 11.
While Laurent Blanc's Bordeaux team is spreading the goals around, Lyon is largely reliant on top scorer Karim Benzema, and lynchpin midfielder Juninho has not scored since Jan. 12.
Yet Govou is confident Lyon is resourceful enough to bounce back against quickly.
«In football, physique is very important,» Govou said. «But even more important is the mental (aspect). Believe me, Lyon will not give let anything slip.
Lyon coach Alain Perrin has made it clear to his players what to expect from a motivated Bordeaux team seeking its first title in nine years.
«It is another European Cup match awaiting us,» he said.
However, Bordeaux defender Mathieu Chalme is wary of a Lyon reaction, and still remembers the 3-1 home defeat to defending champion earlier this season.
«We are good at the moment, but it won't be easy for us,» he told sports daily L'Equipe. «From what I saw (against United), it will be complicated.
At the bottom, PSG is again facing a relegation battle with 11 games remaining and is away to Rennes on Saturday.
PSG is in 17th place with 31 points, just two points ahead of the relegation zone.
Rennes, coached by former PSG boss Guy Lacombe, is also struggling in 14th spot with 34 points.
PSG Goalkeeper Mickael Landreau has made several blunders in recent games and was out of sorts against Bordeaux, even watching one of Wendel's shots roll past him and bounce in off the post.
Coach Paul Le Guen has stood by Landreau, France's No. 2 goalkeeper, but a similar mistake against Rennes may push his patience too far.
In Saturday's other games, it is: Caen vs. Lorient; Nancy vs. Monaco; Nice vs. Le Mans; Strasbourg vs. Metz; Toulouse vs. Sochaux; and Valenciennes vs. Lille.
Fourth-place Marseille hosts Saint-Etienne on Sunday.
