Update: Andre Onana mistakes proved Manchester United ‘arrogance’ ahead of make-or-break Lyon clash News

The editor-in-chief of Get French Football News spoke to the MEN ahead of Man Utd’s huge clash against Lyon.

Manchester United are ready to play their most important game of the entire season.

The Premier League campaign has essentially been written off, and Ruben Amorim understands that winning the Europa League is the only way to salvage something from 2024/2025.

Lifting the Europa League in Bilbao would ensure a trophy from a disastrous campaign and grant entry into the Champions League for next season. United need as much broadcast revenue as they can gather, and playing in the Champions League would also help attract players this summer.

Lyon stand in United’s way of reaching the competition’s semi-final. The French club snatched a late 2-2 draw in the first leg last week and Andre Onana was at fault for both of their goals.

Amorim has confirmed Onana will start against Lyon, meaning all eyes will be on him again.

The Manchester Evening News contacted Luke Entwistle, the editor-in-chief of Get French Football News, to get his thoughts ahead of Thursday night’s game. Entwistle has travelled from France to report on the match and was asked to explain the reaction to last week’s draw at the Groupama Stadium.

“There was certainly a sense of justice in Rayan Cherki’s late equaliser, even if both of Lyon’s goals came from André Onana errors, to varying degrees,” said Entwistle.

“There were certainly the chances to win it for OL with Alexandre Lacazette and Corentin Tolisso wasteful most notably. The performance perhaps exceeded expectations.

“Despite Manchester United’s plight, it is still a club that has a lot of clout and surfs off its historic reputation and so I think that despite Lyon going well in Ligue 1 and Manchester United struggling in the Premier League, there was still a perception that OL were the underdog and so to be able to go toe-to-toe with them drew quite a lot of optimism.”

The pre-match exchange between Onana and Nemanja Matic made headlines and there was a sense of “poetic justice” when the goalkeeper made mistakes, according to Entwistle.

“Onana’s initial comments about Manchester United being ‘way better’ didn’t cause waves in France,” he explained. “As I said, Manchester United’s continued reputation on the continent meant that those comments were not contested as much as they perhaps should have been.

“Matić seemingly hadn’t heard the comments and his explosive comments then did capture the attention of the French and really focused eyes on Onana’s initial comments. Of course, the Cameroonian was heavily booed by Lyon’s fans during the warm-up, despite a slight row-back on those comments.

“So as far as OL fans were concerned, there was a sense of poetic justice in Onana’s display and – collectively – Manchester United’s overall display disproved the goalkeeper’s initial comments and fed into this perception that exists in France of Premier League clubs and their fans being clouded by a sense of arrogance and superiority, especially when it comes to facing French teams.”

What would progressing to the Europa League semi-final mean to Lyon? “It would be a big deal, albeit arguably less of a big deal than it is for Manchester United. Unlike the Premier League side, OL are right in the mix to secure Champions League football and, fourth in Ligue 1,” he said.

“They currently occupy a position that would allow them to qualify for next season’s edition of that competition. For Manchester United, the Europa League is all or nothing; that does not apply to Lyon. However, under John Textor, there is a desire to win a trophy.

“They went close last year, losing to PSG in the Coupe de France final but beyond the glory, there is a financial aspect. OL’s financial woes have been well-documented and they will once again have to sell off assets this summer.

“Not only will getting to the semi-finals bring in some crucial extra funds, it will also provide exposure for the likes of Rayan Cherki and Malick Fofana to allow them to bolster their own market values ahead of anticipated summer moves. The importance for Lyon is financial as much as it is anything else.”

Four goals were scored in the first leg, but Entwistle expects a potentially low-scoring, tactical battle at Old Trafford. “I see Lyon being more pragmatic, perhaps less expansive early on and this could be a more cagey game than the first leg,” he said.

“After the 2-2 draw, Cheki said ‘we will go to Old Trafford to win, to attack, not to defend, as they did here’, so it suggests that OL won’t be playing for penalties by any means.

“Malick Fofana’s return could be crucial and he is a valuable asset on the break and so he is one to really look out for in Lyon’s impressive attacking arsenal.

“OL were brilliant at Auxerre at the weekend, becoming only the third team this season, after Monaco and Strasbourg, to win at the Stade de l’Abbé Deschamps this season. Alexandre Lacazette, Georges Mikautadze and Cherki all got on the scoresheet and so will be confident going into this one.

“For OL, it feels like there is everything to win, for Manchester United, everything to lose and that could shape the mindsets of the respective players. I could see Lyon snatching it, even if I have Manchester United as very marginal favourites.”

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