Overview

The European campaign continues! Having already dispatched Ajax and Zagreb, Madrid look to further cement their place at the top of the table.  Lyon are perhaps the most daunting of our opposition, but with this being a home game it is expected that Madrid will come out on top.  Do not expect Lyon to just lie down, and they do have a number of quality players that could step up and act decisively if the Whites don't watch themselves.

In this edition of Be On the Look Out, we identify players that are likely, for better or for worse, to be talking points after the game.  Surely not all of them will have an impact, but a lack of presence might be just as important of a talking point as scoring a hat-trick.

Players To Watch

Real Madrid

Xabi Alonso- For better or for worse, Madrid lives and dies by Xabi Alonso.  In these sorts of big matches, Alonso's influence is felt even more than usual, and that is saying something.  After having a fantastic game against Real Betis, it is not difficult to predict that the Basque man will have a solid match, but if for some reason he does not... then it will be a long night in Madrid.

Cristiano Ronaldo - Who would have thought that Madridistas would spend days pouring praise on Ronaldo for a game he did not even score in!  That is the enigma that is CR7 though, as he showed us he is more than a goal scoring pony over the weekend.   Will he show the same sort of unselfish behavior or will he return to his ice-veined predator instincts?

Gonzalo Higuaín/Karim Benzema- Unorthodox, to say the least, on my part to list two players in one slot but it is the truth.  Few would question Mourinho if he decided to play the Argentine, given his recent blazing hot form, but Karim is the more proven European threat.  One should also remember that Karim is the better rested of the two, with Gonzalo having logged quite a few minutes recently between club and international play, so a bit of a rest might be in order.  Then again, Karim could perhaps not be completely over his injury and it would be insane to rush him back into the side given that we have a perfectly fit Gonzalo.  To further complicate things, Karim is of course a former Lyon man and has scored the last two times he has faced his old side.

Olympique Lyon

Cris- The veteran captain of his side, Cris is finally returning to the pitch after a short stint on the sidelines due to injury.  After two months, the Madrid offense will be eager to see if they can't take advantage of some lingering rust on the 34 year old Brazilian.  He will likely be central to Lyon's best and worst plays.

Yoann Gourcuff- If you haven't heard much about Gourcuff since he set the world alight during his 2008-2009 Ligue 1 winning season with Bordeaux then you can be forgiven.  Despite all the hype and buzz to surround the player, in fact perhaps partially because of, Gourcuff simply hasn't done his intra-French league record transfer fee justice.  Aulas spent 22M€ on a player that has failed to impress for the French club, but there is still the hope that he can make good.  Wenger showed strong interest in the off-season, perhaps cautioned off only because of Gourcuff's injury that has kept him off the pitch until a substitute appearance this weekend, and could go in on his fellow countryman in the future.  Yet for the time being, Gourcuff remains a Lyon player and despite not having a great performance record for Les Gones, this kid does still have the ability to be a difference maker.  He is likely to play just his first full competitive match in almost half a year, so you should forgive me if his lack of razor sharpness prevents him from making an impact on the match, but the heir to Zinedine remains one to watch.

Bafetimbi Gomis- With Lisandro still sidelined due to injury, the St Etienne remains the largest goal scoring threat for OL.  So far this season he has bagged 7 goals in 10 league matches and single goal in the first two Champion's League matches; this includes a goal he scored just the weekend in a 3-1 victory over AS Nancy.  His last two seasons have both resulted in 12 goals in all competitions, so the Frenchman has had an excellent season by his own standards so far.  As Casillas can testify, Gomis can be a ruthlessly clinical striker, and Lyon will be hoping to score on the first half chance they get with Gomis.  If the Madrid can maintain its wits and mute Gomis then a victory in Madrid will be likely.

Hugo Lloris- One of the up-and-coming superstar goal keepers in the world.  Lloris has been at Lyon since 2008, taking Coupet's spot in between the sticks, and since then his play for both Lyon and the French national team has been outstanding.  Coupet will be the first one to tell you, and Henry will probably be the second, that the number one reason that France progressed through the WCQ play-offs was not a handball, but Lloris keeping them in the match.  Lloris is of the all-around breed of goalie, not quite capable of the positively super human reflex saves that San Iker has built a career on top of, but also not falling victim to the myriad of deficiencies that can haunt a keeper's play.  He will require an effort with some real class if we plan on putting any past him, so Cristiano would be wise to leave the 'shoot wildly from 30 yards out' boots at home.  This might be one of those games where it takes a while to put the ball past the keeper.