Bayern Munich vs Lyon
Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich begin their pre-season schedule on Saturday when they play host to Ligue 1 side Olympique Lyonnais at the Allianz Arena in Munich.
The Bavarians will follow up this clash with games against Tottenham Hotspur and Grasshoppers of Switzerland, before taking on VfB Stuttgart in the Frank Beckenbauer Cup on August 16th. This weekend they face a side with a rich history in the French top flight but a chaotic last 12 months, while the home fans might see a new face in the squad, or certainly in the stands.
The domestic leagues are coming into view and while the two managers, Vincent Kompany and Paulo Fonseca, have a chance to run the rule over their squads, this is a club friendly with plenty of intrigue.
Diaz could feature for Bayern
We’ve been following this story here at SBOTOP for weeks and it seems Bayern’s pursuit of Luis Diaz has reached a conclusion, with the Liverpool star heading from Tokyo to Munich to complete a medical on Tuesday. The English champions have agreed to sell the Colombian winger for a fee of £65.5m, a profit of £15m on the total fee paid by the Merseysiders to bring Diaz from Porto to Liverpool in 2022. With two years left on his contract the player has made no secret of his desire to move on, and the club declined to engage in contract talks, preferring to cash in while they can; and in summer signing Florian Wirtz the Reds have strengthened their creative group already, and they have other irons in the fire.
And reports in Germany suggest that Bayern are hopeful of getting the deal through quickly, even with the possibility of Diaz playing some part in the upcoming friendlies, starting with the match-up against Lyon on Saturday. Fans will hope to see him as soon as possible after previous recruits from the Premier League, Harry Kane and Michael Olise, have fared so well in the Bundesliga.
Bayern’s rivals have been busy in the market this summer but the Bavarians have been relatively quiet, bringing in defender Jonathan Tah as their major recruit, but now things seem to be heating up and Diaz is ready to be introduced.
Lyon looking for stability
Olympique Lyonnais were totally dominant in Ligue 1 not so long ago, winning seven top flight titles between 2001 and 2008; but these halcyon days seem a dim and distant memory after a whirlwind of catastrophe hit the club last year. After recovering under Fonseca to finish sixth in the league table the club suffered an administrative relegation to Ligue 2 as a punishment for racking up unsustainable debts. But, in the biggest Ligue 1 news story of the close season, they successfully appealed to be reinstated into the top flight, with the club’s case put by new general director Michele Kang.
Now Lyon, under the guidance of Kang, a major shareholder and owner of the successful Lyon women’s team, is working hard to balance the books, already selling midfielder Jordan Veretout to Al Arabi, and keeper Lucas Perri to Leeds United, and also looking to get big earners Nemanja Matic and skipper Corentin Tolisso off the books.
Lyon are keen to keep hold of their talented 20 year old winger Malick Fofana. The Belgium international has scored eight goals in 46 games since his arrival from Gent in 2024 for a fee of 17m Euros. Admittedly the club could make a tidy profit on him now and Bayern Munich had an approach ready to go, if the Diaz deal fell through, so Fofana may be a Lyon player for another season at least.
American Kang doesn’t want a fire sale, but she is determined to bring discipline to off field matters and the club will continue to invest in players, but with a keen eye on the bottom line. Brest attacking midfielder Pierre Lees-Melou is close to agreeing a deal to join Lyon. The 32 year old has been a target for Stade Rennais too, but he prefers a move to Lyon and he will be a canny signing.
This is a proud club which has fallen into disarray, but there was much to be impressed by on the field in the second half of last season. As well as climbing up to sixth place Lyon were unlucky not to reach the Europa League semi-final, hit by a remarkable Manchester United comeback and, in Fonseca, they have a manager who can help them challenge again.
But Lyon fans will need plenty of patience. As for Bayern, the Bundesliga 2025 betting odds say they will retain their title; but it will be interesting to see how they measure up to the French on Saturday.
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