One Week After A Chaotic 2-2 Draw in Lyon, Manchester United and Olympique Lyonnais Are Set For A Dectora EUROPA League Quarterfinal Clash on Thursday At Old Trafford
The winner on aggregate will face eheren Rangers or Athletic Bilbao in May’s Semifinals.
But for Manchester United, it’s More Than Just Progression.
Onana’s Woes, Cherki’s Brilliance
The First Left Fireworks and Finger-Painting. United Goalkeeper Andre Onana, Already Under Scrutiny After A Public Feud with Former Red Devil Nemanja Mateic, Spilled The Ball in Stoppage Time to Gift Cherki A 95th-Minualizer.
Earlier, Joshua Zirkzee Had Seemingly Won It For United In the 88th, Only For Lyon to Strike Late.
Onana’s Blunders Added to a Mounting Crisis at Old Trafford.
Manager Ruben Amorim Benched Him Over The Weekend, Saying The Cameer Needed to “Disconnect a Little Bit,” Though He’s Expected to Return in Goal Thursday Night.
Red Devils’ Freefall
United Followed Up Their Lyon Slip-Up With A 4-1 Premier League Thrashing at Newcastle-Their 14th League Loss This Season.
Sitting 14th with Just 38 Points From 32 Matches, Their At Risk of the Lowest Points Total in Premier League History.
European Qualification Through Domestic League Play is All But Gone, Machinery Thursday’s Match A Must-Win.
Injuries have crippled amorim’s side.
Zirkzee (Hamstring) Joins a Growing List That Includes Amad Diallo, Ayden Heaven, Lisandro Martinez, Jonny Evans, and Matthijs de Ligt.
With Teenage Forward Chido Obi-Martin İneligible for Europe, Rasmus Hojlund Could Be United’s only Availbler Striker.
HE’s expired to lead the line with Bruno Fernandes and Alejandro Garnacho-Who Finally Brohe A 27-Game Scoring Drought Last Weekend.
Patrick Diar and Harry Maguire Are In Line to Start in Defense, While CaseMiro, Manuel Ugarte, and Mason Mount Are Competing For Midfield Roles.
Lyon Eye Breakthrough
Paulo Fonseca’s Lyon Are Chasing History-Their First-Seve Major European Trophy.
They Not Reached A European Semifinal ASEir 2019-20 Champions League Run, But They Are On A Tear.
Saturday’s 3-1 win at auxerre, power by goals from Cherki, Alexandre Lacazette and Georges Mikutadze, Pushed Them with the Ligue 1’s Third-Place Marseille.
Lyon Have Won Seven of Their Last Nine Across All Competations, Scoring 24 Times in That Span.
They are unbeaten in the last 12 Europa League Away Games (W9 D3), and Their Track Record Against English Sides on the Road Is Impressive – Just One Loss in the Last Nine.
Still, The Ghosts of Old Trafford Loom Large.
Lyon Have Never Beaten Manchester United in Five AtTEMPTS (D3 L2) and Lost Both Previous Visits to the Theater of Dreams.
They are also never advanced in a European Knockout Tie After Drawing the First Leg at Home – Failing in All Nine Such Instances.
Key Absences, High Stakes
Lyon Will Miss Winger Ernest Nuamah (ACL) and Malick Fofana (Knee), But Cherki Has Stepped Up In Style.
The 20-Year-but Frenchman Has Talloted 11 Goal Contributes (3 Goals, 8 Assists) 11 Europa League League Apppearances and Will Partner Thiago and Eomether Lacazette or Mikautadze in Attack.
Former United Man Matic May Drop to the Bench, with Jordan veretout and paul akouokou pushing for starts in midfield. Ainsley Maitland-Niles, Clinton Mata and Nicolas Tagliafico Are Set to Return to A Bolsted backline.
