Dein erstes Forum » Messi became its centerpiece, B

PARIS -- If Lyon wants to challenge for the French league title it must learn how to defend, because frailties at the back were glaringly exposed again in a 3-1 home loss to Bordeaux on Saturday.Monaco took full advantage to move top of the league with a 4-1 win at Lille, with three of the goals scored by defenders.Earlier, long-serving Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas watched glum-faced from the stands as former France winger Jeremy Menez scored the third goal in the 90th minute, by which point many fans were already leaving their seats. At the final whistle, goalkeeper Anthony Lopes sat slumped against the goalpost with his head in his hands.Top scorer Alexandre Lacazette, who was involved in the move that led to Aldo Kalulu giving Lyon a second-minute lead, limped off near the end with a thigh injury.Its a nightmare of an afternoon, Aulas said. The result was very disappointing and we have more bad news.Lacazette is expected to be out for several weeks with a thigh injury.He felt a really big pain when he made a run, Aulas said. The doctor will speak tomorrow but were expecting it to be a few weeks.But it all started going wrong long before Lacazette limped back to the dressing room.Lyon was not closing down high enough up the pitch and sat back after the opening goal, leaving Bordeaux too much room.Striker Malcolm equalized, and Lyons marking was awful when Gregory Sertic headed in to make it 2-1 in the 71st. Just moments earlier, Lyon went down to 10 men when captain Maxime Gonalons was red-carded for a heavy challenge on Malcolm.The loss follows a defeat away to Dijon in the previous round, when Lyon led 2-1 before losing 4-2.But the warning signs were already there when Lyon lost 4-1 to Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions Trophy, Frances traditional preseason opener.Still, when Lyon won its opening two league games of the campaign -- with Lacazette scoring five goals -- this raised expectations that it could be a contender in the league eight years after winning the last of its seven straight French titles. The signing of center half Nicolas NKoulou from Marseille was supposed to improve the defense, but the Cameroon international has struggled and was dropped for Saturdays match.To compound the defeat, midfielder Rachid Ghezzal was booked for diving late on to try and claimed a penalty.Although Aulas said he has total faith in coach Bruno Genesio, he added that solutions must be found ahead of Wednesdays Champions League game against Dinamo Zagreb.Bordeaux climbed up to second place with nine points, one behind Monaco.Heres what else happened in the French League:MONACO 4 LILLE 1Monaco welcomed back striker Radamel Falcao from injury, but he was not even needed.Right back Djibril Sidibe put Monaco ahead early on from a free kick, midfielder Adama Traore scored, and defender Fabinho made it 3-0 early in the second half before center back Kamil Glick added the fourth.Monacos hopes of a clean sheet were dashed when Lille defender Julian Palmieri scored in injury time.OTHER RESULTSGuingamp missed the chance to move level at the top when it drew 1-1 at home to Montpellier, needing an equalizer from midfielder Marcus Coco.Nancy climbed off the bottom with a 2-0 win at Lorient, which dropped to last, while Angers also grabbed its first win of the season against Dijon by 3-1, and Corsican side Bastia beat Toulouse 2-1.On Sunday, much-traveled striker Mario Balotelli could make his Nice debut at home to Marseille. 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Jakub Voracek Flyers Jersey .2 billion agreement with Rogers Communications for the leagues broadcast and multimedia rights.BARCELONA, Spain -- There are three reasons why Barcelona is favoured to keep its Spanish league title. They are as concise as they are convincing: Lionel Messi, Andres Iniesta and Neymar. Known for its passing, Barcelona can now field three of soccers most confounding and creative dribblers in the same starting 11 after Neymar joined the champions this off-season for $76 million, the eighth most expensive transfer in history. Looks perfect on paper. So what could go wrong? The soft-spoken Iniesta has always been happy to relinquish the leading role to Messi. But will Neymar, the bright and shining star of Brazil, be able to do likewise after being idolized as the next coming of Pele at Santos? The 21-year-old Neymar insisted repeatedly the day of his introduction that he had "come to add my part so that Lionel Messi continues to be the best player in the world." Weeks later, after his first game in Barcelonas burgundy and blue, he repeated his mantra of being happy in a secondary role. "(Messi) is a marvelous person. We talk every day. There wont be any problems," Neymar said. "The atmosphere on the team is better than I even hoped for. I knew that they were good, but when I arrived here I realized they were much better than I had thought." "Im fulfilling a dream of my childhood by playing beside Messi, Xavi (Hernandez), Iniesta, (Carles) Puyol," he added. "Im trying to adapt as quickly as I can." Yet Neymar, who Pele said could surpass the almighty Messi one day, will have to learn Barcelonas style, which until now has let only Messi and Iniesta freelance one-on-one against backpedaling defenders. And if Neymar does stay true to his word, Messi will still need to share enough of the ball -- and shots -- with Neymar to let him reach his full potential. Messi is the engine of the Barcelona juggernaut that won 14 of 19 possible titles under Pep Guardiola from 2008-12 and then tied a Spanish-league record of 100 points en route to the title last season under Tito Vilanova.dddddddddddd Messi turned 26 in June and already is Barcelonas all-time goal scorer. Last season, he scored 46 goals in the league and was well on pace to break his own record of 50 goals from the previous campaign when he injured his right hamstring. The four-time world player of the year has outlasted a list of strike partners including Samuel Etoo, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and now David Villa, with whom he openly argued on the field before the Spain striker was sold this summer to Atletico Madrid. Neymar, however, is different. For the first time since Messi became its centerpiece, Barcelona has brought in a player who could represent its future in a distant post-Messi era. For that reason, the two standouts will need to understand one another. Otherwise, it could be a real problem for Barcelona after it invested major money in bringing the two together with Iniesta, Xavi and Cesc Fabregas. The task of making sure the two stars -- one firmly established as among the best in history, the other striving to join him -- get along will ultimately fall to new coach Gerardo Martino. The Argentine replaced Vilanova after Guardiolas former assistant unexpectedly stepped down in late July to focus on treatment for his recurrent throat cancer. "I cant imagine (Messi and Neymar) not being able to play together," Martino said at his presentation. "And if they cant play together it wont be their fault but rather a defect of the coach." The bottom line: If Martino can keep Messi and Neymar happy -- and that means piling up impressive goal numbers -- then the rest of the league should beware. 18:11ET 15-08-13 ' ' '