Gary Neville knows his first match as Valencia head coach will be a life-changing moment.

The La Liga side must beat Lyon on Wednesday to have a chance of reaching the last 16 of the Champions League.

Former Manchester United and England full-back Neville has taken charge of the team - in his first managerial role - until the end of the season.

"Someone said it's the first day of the rest of my life," said the 40-year-old. "I'm focusing on staying calm."

Valencia need to win and hope Belgian champions Gent fail to beat Zenit St Petersburg, who have already qualified.

Should they progress, it will be their first appearance in the knockout phase for three years.

Under Hector Cuper, Valencia reached back-to-back Champions League finals in 2000 and 2001, losing both to Real Madrid and Bayern Munich.

"Lyon is a big game, it sets the benchmark straight away," said Neville. "It gives me an immediate understanding of what our mentality is like.

"Not everything is in our hands, but we have to focus on what we do control.

"If we don't have the result in the other game we want, that's life. The most important thing for us is focusing on our players, our direct opponent."