Bayern Munich recovered from Franck Ribery's sending-off to take a slender lead in their Champions League semi-final thanks to Arjen Robben's goal.
France midfielder Ribery was dismissed after 37 minutes for an ugly studs-up challenge on Lisandro Lopez.But an unadventurous Lyon side lost Jeremy Toulalon to a harsh second yellow card early in the second half. And Robben gave Bayern a deserved win when his 30-yard effort took a slight deflection to beat Hugo Lloris.
It was Robben's glorious volley which had accounted for Manchester United in the previous round. That win, coupled with their form in the Bundesliga which saw them thrash Hannover 7-0 on Saturday, had made Bayern favourites ahead of the semi-final.
Louis van Gaal's side dominated possession in the early stages against a defensive Lyon side set up to play on the counter, with just Lopez up front.
Bayern Munich manager Louis van Gaal:
"I am very satisfied. I think that we showed Europe how strong we are, we showed that by dominating with 10 men against 11.
"I did not think that we would win 1-0 with Ribery getting a red card, but we dominated. I think we created more chances when we were with 10 men against 11.
"When we were then 10 against 10 I sent in (another striker) Mario Gomez to score a goal faster. We created many chances but scored one goal. That is good."
Lyon coach Claude Puel:
"I am not looking for excuses. We still have some chances. We did not succeed in scoring that crucial away goal. I would have preferred to have lost with an away goal.
"We started well but we lost the ball too easily. In the second half we were too weak with the ball.
"Ribery's red card allowed us to take control of the match but then we then we had our player sent off. When it was 10 against 10 it became a very difficult match for us."
source: ESPN, BBC
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