French outfit Olympique Lyon might be second in the league table, but leaders Paris St-Germain hold their own. The two teams are separated by a wide gap of 13 points in the Ligue 1 standings, and bridging the points gap is something that will be on top of the agenda for Lyon as they go head-to-head with Montpellier in their 15th game of the season on Friday.
The Stade de Garland in Lyon, France, hosts the French league encounter.
The away side do not look much of a threat on paper, as they are 14th in the table at the moment, but Montpellier's unbeaten record in the previous five matches comes as a worry to other teams in the league.
Montpellier, Ligue 1 champions in 2011-12, recorded six defeats at the start of the season, but somehow managed to get their footing back on the league this season with the recent run of form.
"We have managed to remain calm and stick together. It's an impressive tally," Montpellier boss Rolland Courbis said.
"We are picking up points because we are making progress. We didn't expect to have 15 points after a catastrophic start. It is not impossible that we might be one of the good teams of the second half of the season."
The home side, meanwhile, also enjoyed an unbeaten run from five matches, but their winning streak came to an end as they suffered a 0-3 defeat against Nice in their previous Ligue 1 game. Lyon also suffered a 1-2 defeat against the Belgian side Gent in a UEFA Champions League 2015-16 group game mid-week.
Lyon, champions of the French league on seven occasions, are now at the bottom of the ChampÑ–ons League Group H and apparently do not stand a chance of making it to the Europa League this season. Lyon presÑ–dent Jean-MÑ–chel Aulas, however, sees the positive.
"It's perhaps a questÑ–on of no paÑ–n, no gaÑ–n.
"We are now goÑ–ng to focus all our energy on qualÑ–fyÑ–ng dÑ–rectly for the ChampÑ–ons League lÑ–ke we dÑ–d last season. We're Ñ–n a good posÑ–tÑ–on but we know that all that can be quÑ–te fragÑ–le. We must regroup now Ñ–n LÑ–gue 1," Aulas said.
Where to watch the game
Olympique Lyon vs Montpellier is scheduled to start at the Stade de Garland at 7.30 pm GMT (1 am IST, 2.30 pm ET).
Viewers in India can catch the game on Ten Action. The option of live streaming of the game for India (and the rest of the subcontinent) is available on tensports.com.
UK viewers can catch the game on BT Sport Extra.
US viewers can catch the game on beIN Sports and Fubo TV, with the option of live streaming on beIN Sports Connect.
Viewers in France can tune into beIN Sports 1. Android and iOS users can also catch the game on Ligue 1 Orange app.
The live scores can be followed on Bet365.
