Champions League clash between Lyon & Juventus confirmed for August 7 by Aulas

Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas has revealed that his side will take in the second leg of their Champions League last-16 encounter with Juventus on August 7.

The first meeting between Ligue 1 and Serie A heavyweights took place on February 26 when a solitary effort from Lucas Tousart proved to be enough in that contest for the French hosts to claim a narrow advantage.

No return date in Turin has been taken in as yet, with the coronavirus pandemic forcing football into a state of indefinite lockdown.

In France, the decision has been taken to bring domestic campaigns to a premature conclusion, rather than wait on a window to open up in which to play fixture lists to a finish.

Lyon are among those to have been left bitterly disappointment by that decision, as they are set to be without European football for 2020-21.

They are, however, still in continental competition for the current campaign and Aulas claims that rivalries will be rekindled with Cristiano Ronaldo and Co towards the end of the summer.

He has told RTL: “The match against Juventus is confirmed to take place on August 7, in Turin and behind closed doors.”

The decision to state at this point that no fans will be in attendance for the clash at the Allianz Stadium comes as no surprise, with social distancing measures still in place around the world.

It does, however, remain to be seen how much football either side will have taken in before Champions League action resumes.

Authorities in Serie A are yet to set a date for any return to action, while Lyon are facing up to several months without a competitive outing.

Aulas believes that will put his side, and domestic rivals Paris Saint-Germain, at a serious disadvantage when facing European foes.

PSG are already through to the quarter-finals, but are yet to discover who they will face, and those in Lyon still intend to contest the decision to call time on the current campaign in France.

Aulas added: “If the appeals do not succeed, then Lyon and Paris are being sent to be massacred by teams who will have had a preparation that the others have not had.”

Four last-16 encounters have already been completed, with PSG edging out Borussia Dortmund, Atletico Madrid toppling reigning champions Liverpool, RB Leipzig sweeping aside Tottenham and Atalanta continuing their fairytale run with an 8-4 aggregate win over Valencia.