Sparta Praha vs 04.08.26 18:002 – 1Full Time
Lyon — UEFA Champions League: stats, lineups & analysis
Match report
Sparta Praha come from behind to beat Lyon in Champions League qualifying
Sparta Praha beat Lyon 2-1 at epet ARENA in the UEFA Champions League third qualifying round, turning around a half-time deficit with two second-half goals. The result came after Sparta had trailed since the first half.
AI-assisted match report written from official match data.
Lyon went ahead just before the break when Martin Suchomel put through his own net, giving the visitors a 1-0 lead at half-time. Sparta responded early in the second half through Matěj Ryneš, who converted an assist from Andrew Irving in the 63rd minute to level the score. Six minutes later John Mercado struck, teed up by Ryneš, to put the home side 2-1 ahead, a lead they held to the finish.
Sparta shaded possession at 52% to 48% and were credited with one more yellow card than Lyon, who had more shots and corners overall despite finishing behind on the scoreboard.
Matěj Ryneš scored Sparta's equaliser and set up the winning goal for John Mercado, finishing with a rating of 7.9.
Lyon had more corners than Sparta despite losing the match, winning nine to six.
Sparta Praha beat Lyon 2–1 (half-time 0–1).
Sparta Praha met Lyon in the UEFA Champions League (3rd Qualifying Round). Kick-off was Tuesday, 4 August 2026, 18:00 UTC at Pragues Letna Hill. Referee: Serdar Gozubuyuk.
Team pages: Sparta Praha · Lyon · UEFA Champions League
Key moments
- 45' Goal (own goal): Martin Suchomel — 0–1 · Watch Martin Suchomel's goal video (45')
- 63' Goal: Matěj Ryneš (assist: Andrew Irving) — 1–1 · Watch Matěj Ryneš's goal video (63')
- 69' Goal: John Mercado (assist: Matěj Ryneš) — 2–1 · Watch John Mercado's goal video (69')
Starting line-ups
Sparta Praha (4-2-3-1)
Lyon (3-4-3)
Sirius · Why these numbers
Before kick-off Sirius gave Sparta Praha 24%, the draw 25%, Lyon 51%. It finished Sparta Praha 2–1 Lyon.
Lyon's rating gap outweighs Sparta Praha's home ground — Lyon are clearly the stronger side on our strength rating, and that is most of Lyon's 51%. The draw at 25% is about what a gap this size usually leaves.
Why Lyon at 51%?
Lyon sit 204 points higher on our strength rating — 1685 to 1889. Sides with a 200–300-point rating edge on the road won 52.0% of 6,001 such games. The 300 most similar past games finished 27–25–48.
Why only 51%?
No scored evidence points the other way. 51% is what this rating gap has been worth in games like these; the rest is the draw at 25% and Sparta Praha at 24%.
Why the draw at 25%?
With a rating gap this size the draw starts at 24.0%. These teams' recent games average 2.5 goals — a typical goals environment. Games in that environment drew 26.2% of 27,478. The goals environment adds 1.2 points to the draw.
Sirius probabilities, frozen at kick-off. Analysis, not betting advice. How Sirius is doing this season · Full breakdown, evidence cards and squad news in the Match Insights tab
About this match
On this page: the Sparta Praha vs Lyon final score and result, goal highlights and video clips of every goal, who scored, starting lineups, match stats and the full match report from this UEFA Champions League fixture.
- Who scored and when — a goal-by-goal timeline of the match.
- Match stats — possession, shots, expected goals (xG), corners and cards.
- Starting lineups and player ratings for both teams.
- Head-to-head record and recent form for both sides.
- Watch Martin Suchomel's own goal video (45').
- Watch Matěj Ryneš's goal against Lyon (63').
- Watch John Mercado's goal against Lyon (69').
Watch the goals: goal highlights and video clips of every goal from Sparta Praha 2–1 Lyon. Explore more on the Sparta Praha and Lyon team pages or the UEFA Champions League page.
Quick answers
›What was the final score of Sparta Praha vs Lyon?
Sparta Praha beat Lyon 2–1 (half-time 0–1).
›Who scored in Sparta Praha vs Lyon?
Martin Suchomel (45') (own goal) for Lyon; Matěj Ryneš (63') for Sparta Praha; John Mercado (69') for Sparta Praha.
›Where can I watch Sparta Praha vs Lyon highlights?
Goal highlights and video clips from Sparta Praha 2–1 Lyon are on this page — open the videos tab to watch every goal.
›What is the head-to-head record between Sparta Praha and Lyon?
Sparta Praha and Lyon have met 3 times — 0 wins for Sparta Praha, 3 wins for Lyon and 0 draws.