Goal of the day: Samuel Umtiti (Lyon) vs Tottenham
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Samuel Umtiti's sensational strike looked to have earned Olympique Lyon a draw until Gareth Bale once again came to the rescue for Tottenham Hotspur.
Bale opened the scoring at White Hart Lane when he drilled home a 40-yard free-kick on the stroke of half-time.
Lyon came out firing after the break and were level in the 55th minute thanks to Umtiti's stunning strike.
William Gallas thought he had cleared the danger when he glanced Steed Malbranque's excellent cross clear.
His header was only a half clearance, though, as the ball ran out to Umtiti, who walked onto a half-volley that the ball did not stop rising until it flashed into the top corner of Brad Friedel' net.
And it looked as though Lyon had done enough to take a draw back to the Stade de Gerland until the 93rd minute when Bale hit another free-kick past Rémy Vercoutre to give Spurs a narrow advantage going into next week' return leg.
"In football we must try, that's what I did," said Umtiti after the game.
"For a split second I wanted to control the ball, and then I felt the the momentum as it came closer. I'm very pleased I hit it."
Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas added: "Samuel scored a fantastic goal - he is part of the younger generation at Lyon that has a lot of mental strength."
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| Lyon player Samuel Umtiti celebrates his equalising goal against Tottenham with his teammates Photo: Reuters |
Bale opened the scoring at White Hart Lane when he drilled home a 40-yard free-kick on the stroke of half-time.
Lyon came out firing after the break and were level in the 55th minute thanks to Umtiti's stunning strike.
William Gallas thought he had cleared the danger when he glanced Steed Malbranque's excellent cross clear.
His header was only a half clearance, though, as the ball ran out to Umtiti, who walked onto a half-volley that the ball did not stop rising until it flashed into the top corner of Brad Friedel' net.
And it looked as though Lyon had done enough to take a draw back to the Stade de Gerland until the 93rd minute when Bale hit another free-kick past Rémy Vercoutre to give Spurs a narrow advantage going into next week' return leg.
"In football we must try, that's what I did," said Umtiti after the game.
"For a split second I wanted to control the ball, and then I felt the the momentum as it came closer. I'm very pleased I hit it."
Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas added: "Samuel scored a fantastic goal - he is part of the younger generation at Lyon that has a lot of mental strength."
Team Also see:
