Lyon and Crystal Palace Are Even in Everything but the Scoreline in the Europa League

The Groupama Stadium opens its doors for a matchup that starts with both sides as evenly matched as can be: one game played, one win and three points apiece in the Europa League league phase. Lyon host Crystal Palace looking to confirm their start was no fluke, though they face an opponent that arrived making a strong statement of its own.

Lyon won their opening match of the tournament 2-1, a result that leaves them with a goal difference of just +1. In recent form, counting the last five matches across all competitions, they have three wins, one draw and one loss, stringing together a win, a draw and two straight victories before falling in their most recent match in that sample. Crystal Palace, on the other hand, opened the league phase with a 4-0 rout that leaves them at +4 and among the best marks in the group. Their recent form also shows three wins, one draw and one loss in the last five, though they closed out that stretch with a victory.

In the overall tournament standings both sides share 3 points after one match played, which makes sense given the competition has barely gotten underway: Crystal Palace sit in second place and Lyon in eleventh, but with only one matchday in the books those positions say more about goal difference than about the real level of either team.

When it comes to season trends, the numbers need to be read carefully: in the Europa League 2026 sample alone, across one home game and one away game, over a single match, Crystal Palace have a 100% clean sheet rate, while Lyon sit at 0%. That is a one-game sample and does not reflect overall tournament performance, which we already know from the record above: Lyon conceded one goal and Palace conceded none. In that same sample, Lyon scored through Keito Nakamura and Noah Nartey, while Palace split their goals among Eddie Nketiah, Jorgen Strand Larsen and Yeremy Pino, all of them inside the opening 15 minutes.

The head-to-head history between the two sides is brief: just one previous meeting, won by Crystal Palace 2-0. It is not a large enough sample to draw sweeping conclusions, but it does leave Lyon without a win on record against this opponent.

The Likely Lineups

For Lyon, based on what has been seen in their recent matches, Dominik Greif would start in goal, with a back line of Zachary Athekame, Felix Bacher, Moussa Niakhate and Abner Vinicius. The midfield would feature Tyler Morton, Corentin Tolisso and Mads Bidstrup, while up front Lois Openda, Ernest Nuamah and Pavel Sulc would round out the attack. For Crystal Palace, the likely lineup would have Walter Benitez in goal, with Chris Richards, Axel Disasi and Jaydee Canvot across the back, Quinten Timber, Anan Khalaili, Tyrick Mitchell and Adam Wharton in midfield, and an attacking trio of Yeremy Pino, Daichi Kamada and Jorgen Strand Larsen. These are projected lineups based on each team's recent matches, not confirmed starting elevens.

What the Numbers Say Before Kickoff

Our model does not find a clear favorite for this match. The probabilities are split almost three ways, with a slight tilt toward Lyon for playing at home.

Expected goals back up that even reading: 1.32 for Lyon versus 1.30 for Crystal Palace, for an estimated total of 2.62 goals in the match. These are figures from our own model, not a bookmaker's odds, but they confirm there is no clear favorite.

With both teams unbeaten so far in the tournament and looking to put some distance between themselves and the rest of the group this early, the Groupama Stadium should deliver a contested match from start to finish, with no room for rushed conclusions about who is handling this start to the league phase better.