LYON, France (AFP) - A first-half goal from France international defender Eric Abidal fired Lyon into the French League Cup final as they overpowered Le Mans at their Gerland Stadium.

Abidal beat the off-side trap to score with a powerful shot to the left from Florent Malouda after 22 minutes as the French league champions set up a final showdown at the Stade de France on March 31 with Bordeaux, who beat Reims 2-1 in their semi-final on Tuesday.

Despite fighting all the way Le Mans could find no answer to the hosts and their problems were compounded after 81 minutes when they were reduced to ten men after defender Gregory Cerdan was sent off for a second yellow card.

Remi Vercoutre, replacing the injured Gregory Coupet in Lyon goal, did well to keep out efforts from Mathieu Courtadeur and Mamadou Samassa to equalise in the second half.

The hosts missed the chance to pull further ahead when Anthony Reveillere´s effort on 57 minutes hit the post, with Fred (69) and Malouda (75) also missing the target.

Lyon are set for their third League Cup final, six years after winning the title, a win which unlocked the key to success and was followed by five consecutive French first division titles.