LYON, France (AP) - Lyon’s hopes of winning the Europa League have been hit by an injury to top scorer Alexandre Lacazette.
Lacazette scored his 31st goal of the season on Thursday during the quarterfinal return leg against Besiktas, which finished 2-1 to the Turkish side and 3-3 on aggregate. Lyon went through 7-6 on penalty kicks, but Lacazette went off with a leg muscle injury before extra time.
Lyon was drawn against Ajax on Friday, with the first leg in Amsterdam on May 3.
“It will be very tight for him to come back in time for the semifinal,” club president Jean-Michel Aulas said. “We will do everything we can for him to be with us.”
The winner of the Europa League qualifies for the Champions League, which is Lyon’s only shot seeing as it can no longer finish higher than fourth in the French league. Monaco, Paris Saint-Germain, and Nice are guaranteed to finish in the top three.
The 25-tear-old Lacazette has scored four goals in the Europa League and one in the Champions League group stage this season. He is rated at more than 50 million euros ($54 million) and is expected to join a big European club this summer.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.