Lyon moved away from the OL Park the happiest of the two teams last week after securing a 2-1 victory over Besiktas, but it was a match marked by crowd problems and Lyon only grabbed the victory for the first time thanks to a comeback late. The match was postponed for almost an hour as the crowd was forced onto the pitch amid riots, and both teams face UEFA charges regarding the incident. The tensions are likely to be a bit high on Thursday night.
This defeat put an end to Besiktas's unbeaten streak in all competitions, winning eight of those 11 matches and clinching Istanbul Basaksekhir five points in the Turkish Superleague.
In the Europa League they have beaten Olympiakos and Hapoel Be'er Sheva after finishing third in their Champions League group, but this is the first time they face having to come from behind in a draw this season.
Lyon's problems did not end at Parc OL last week. His visit to Bastia on Sunday was delayed after a group of home fans tried to attack Lyon players, and despite going out to play, the first half continued riots resulted in the match being canceled. Not exactly the best preparation for a potentially hot second leg in Istanbul's cauldron!
Lyon have won only two of their last six games in all competitions, and away from home it is even worse for them. They have won two, tied for two, and lost six of their last ten days of absence, including a 2-1 loss to Roma in their last draw in the Europa League.
Besiktas, meanwhile, has won 11, tied one, and lost one of their last 13 home matches in all competitions, so you will definitely feel like a chance here.