Juninho ready for Saint-Etienne

Friday 9 December, 2005

Lyon's Brazilian star Juninho Pernambucano has declared himself fit for Sunday’s derby showdown with Saint-Etienne.

The free-kick wizard picked up a thigh strain against Paris Saint-Germain last weekend but, after being rested for the Rosenborg game on Tuesday, is now ready to return.

“I’m going to be ok,” insisted the midfielder. “I’ll have to be careful because I’ve had some treatment. But I took part in training on Friday morning, playing with a ball for 20 minutes. I feel good and I’m ready for the game.”

Juninho is hoping for a repeat of last season’s thrilling match at the Stade Geoffroy-Guichard when Lyon scored twice in the dying seconds to seal a 3-2 win.

“Last year’s game remains a great memory for me and for the team,” he continued. “It was a really tough game.

“Les Verts scored two goals very quickly in the second half but we managed to react and won in the end. And I scored twice!”