Gutman unaffected by Lyon struggles

Lyon are in the relegation zone after failing to win any of their past four league games, including Saturday's home defeat in the Derby du Rhone to arch rivals St Etienne. The pressure is starting to mount on coach Claude Puel but Gutman remains wary of a side which reached the semi-finals last season before bowing out to Bayern Munich. He said: "I think Lyon are a very strong and experienced team. They have excellent players. "But Lyon are in a difficult situation in the league right now. But this has no influence on the match. "The Champions League is a different situation. They won against Schalke in their first match, and for me Lyon are still the favourites to win Group B. "So, for us, one point would be a good result." Hapoel went down 2-0 to Benfica in their pool opener but Gutman is still optimistic they can advance to the knockout stages. He added: "After our defeat at Benfica, our situation hasn't improved, that is clear. "It is harder now to reach our goals, but it is not impossible. "It was our goal to finish second or third, and this is still our goal. "I think my team is strong enough, we still have five matches to go and everything is possible." Lyon's hopes of getting their season back on track have been hit by an injury list which shows little sign of abating. Lisandro Lopez and Jean Makoun will again miss out while Cris, Cesar Delgado and Ederson have not travelled. Despite the visitors' struggles, outspoken president Jean-Michel Aulas has no plans to change coach after throwing his support behind Puel. He told France Football: "You'd be surprised how many messages of support I get for Claude. "There is nobody inside the club who contradicts that view. "We opted to give him a four-year contract with a view to bringing a degree of stability to the club. "That said, we can always make a decision at any moment."