St Etienne vs Lyon - Bruno Genesio will accept draw against St Etienne

Lyon coach Bruno Genesio faces another test of his side's revival since his appointment with Sunday's derby against St Etienne.

Free-scoring wins over Limoges in the Coupe de France and Troyes in Ligue 1 were followed by a narrow 2-1 loss to Paris St Germain in the Coupe de la Ligue and Genesio and co now face their bitter rivals.

Genesio told his club's website: "I'll tell you afterwards whether it was any different. It's always a special match, but I hope it remains a game of football, a celebration.

"If we lose, it will be a real kick in the teeth because we've been doing well and we need to start climbing the table. We need to put a positive run together.

"A draw would be a good result against a side who are very strong at home."

OL's 3-0 win in the fixture in Lyon earlier in the season saw St Etienne striker Robert Beric suffer a serious knee injury after a wild tackle by Jordan Ferri.

But, asked about the incidents in that match, Genesio insisted: "I don't think there really were any.

"Jordan Ferri had no malign intentions. I didn't see anyone on either side doing anything untoward."

Lyon welcome Mathieu Valbuena back from injury, but will be without Maxime Gonalons and Henri Bedimo - and will also not be cheered on by their fans, who have been banned from travelling to the fixture.

"I think it's a shame that our fans won't be there," Genesio said. "Football is supposed to be a party and that aspect of it will be spoiled."

St Etienne fans faced similar restrictions for last week's trip to Nantes, where the home fans gave a rendition of a St Etienne chant and displayed a banner protesting against banning orders.

Defeat in that fixture was Les Verts' sixth in a row away from home and they have won only one of their last five league games and two in eight in all competitions, one of which came on penalties against minnows Raon l'Etape in the Coupe de France.

Christophe Galtier was very critical after the Nantes game and, reflecting on it further ahead of the derby, he told his club's website: "If we do not have the right spirit, we cannot get results.

"I am not looking for revenge, nor combat. It is about local supremacy with the derby very close.

"Engagement, determination, solidarity, yes, but I do not want combat. It is still a football match. We do not go on to the field to destroy our opponents."

Forward Romain Hamouma is out injured, joining defenders Loic Perrin, Francois Clerc and Benoit Assou-Ekotto.

But Holland Under-21 midfielder Oussama Tannane could make his debut and the club have an "agreement in principle" for the return of Franck Tabanou from Swansea.