Bodo/Glimt-Lille: Unsinkable Ozer, seductive but cautious Mastiffs… The tops and the flops

End of hemorrhage. Lille goalkeeper Berke Ozer was imperious during his team's draw at Bodo/Glimt on Tuesday evening (0-0). After conceding 10 goals in the first 3 days of the Champions League, Ozer put an end to a worrying series. Little used in the first period, the awakening of the locals in the second forced the Turk to make decisive saves. Positioned on his line and quickly on the ground when necessary, Ozer saved his teammates on several occasions (59th, 67th and 84th). Especially since Bodo/Glimt had found the net in each of their last five home matches in the C1 league phase. Capital performance.

Lille was not bad, on the contrary. With an interesting and very present Benjamin André in the midfield, Lille had confidence, especially in the first half. Applied in transmissions, collective placement and in defense, a sector which has been sorely lacking since the start of the European campaign, Davide Ancelotti's men recited their football. Quick in transition forward, the Mastiffs had several opportunities to open the scoring, and at the same time, their points counter in C1. An overall attractive performance… but not enough.

In the freezing cold, Lille were too cautious to fully enjoy this meeting. A fluid, clean game, perhaps a little too much in fact... And which terribly lacked precision in the last gesture, like Bakwa, Diaoune and Haraldsson who all tried, but without ever really worrying the Norwegian goalkeeper. If the waterlogged synthetic turf didn't help, the Mastiffs failed to find the spark to break the Bodo/Glimt lock. It's a shame.

It was the meeting not to be lost. It’s done. But above all it was the one to win. It was missed. Defeated in the first three Champions League matches, LOSC was on a “comeback” mission. The Mastiffs needed points to hope to qualify at least for the play-offs. This draw almost definitively buries Lille's hopes. If mathematically, nothing is done, behind them loom the reception of Bayern Munich, a trip to Stuttgart and meetings against Slovan Bratislava, dead last, and AS Roma. Suffice to say that the opportunities to restart are almost zero. Lille will need a lot of self-sacrifice and a little help from destiny to continue the competition.

Kjetil Knutsen's men remained on a particularly impressive run of six consecutive home victories in the Champions League. From Manchester City to Sporting Portugal, via Borussia Dortmund, the greatest have fallen in the Far North of Norway. If LOSC was overall frustrating and disappointing, Bodo/Glimt was no better. Soporific in the first half, he gradually began to play in the second, especially the last half hour. It was the locals who finished strong and without the interventions of a vigilant Ozer, they would have pocketed the three points. But a match is played for 90 minutes, not 30. Star striker Jens Petter Hauge was rarely found. Captain and maestro Patrick Berg tried, particularly on set pieces… in vain. A ultimately logical draw between two imprecise teams lacking inspiration.