1 week Ago By [email protected] (Steven Railston)
Manchester United drew with Lyon in the first leg of their Europa League quarter-final. Andre Onana made a bad mistake for Lyon's opening goal in the 26th minute, but Leny Yoro scored just before half-time to notch his first goal for United since joining Lille last summer. United looked better in the second half and Joshua Zirkzee scored with two minutes remaining, only for Lyon to score in the fifth minute of added time to seal a 2-2 draw at home.
Here are the moments you might have missed from the game...
Zirkzee makes the Glazers smile Zirkzee thought he'd scored the match-winner in the 88th minute. United were much improved in the second half and deserved to get over the line, so it was great to see Zirkzee produce a goal. The Dutchman celebrated as he was mobbed by his teammates and the TV cameras picked up Avram Glazer and Joel Glazer, who were both smiling at the late strike.
United fans have continued to protest against the Glazers since Sir Jim Ratcliffe acquired a minority stake, so supporters wouldn't have been happy to see the Americans in attendance. Avram has attended a handful of United games at Wembley in the last few years, but Joel has not been seen at a home game since the 2019 Champions League quarter-final first leg against Barcelona. The Glazers smiled at Zirkzee's goal.
(Image: 2025 Anadolu) Yoro shows his winning mentality Yoro equalised on the stroke of half-time to score his first United goal. He did brilliantly to head the ball into the net after it was speculatively fired back into the box by Manuel Ugarte. Lyon goalkeeper, Lucas Perri, should have done better, but Yoro deserved credit for reacting quickly.
Instead of celebrating, Yoro rushed back to the halfway line for the restart and waved his hands at his teammates. Yoro has the right mentality and he's made a pleasing start to life at United. Mount has an edge to him Mason Mount was booked for the second game running on Thursday night.
He was shown a yellow card when he came on from the bench in the Manchester derby and he attracted the referee's attention again when he got into a tangle with Nicolas Tagliafico. A melee broke out and Mount was at the centre of the scuffle. Ruben Amorim has admitted that he "loves" Mount because he can tell how much the midfielder "wants it", and it's clear to see the 26-year-old possesses the kind of bite to be successful at Old Trafford.
Tagliafico clashing with Mount. (Image: 2025 Getty Images) Onana said nothing to Matic Nemanja Matic and Onana dominated the pre-match build-up. Matic said Onana was "one of the worst goalkeepers in Manchester United history", and Onana responded by saying: "At least I’ve lifted trophies with the greatest club in the world.
Some can’t say the same." Footballers are all media-trained and it was refreshing to see two players drop their guard. When Onana emerged to warm up before the game, Matic was standing yards away and chatting with a United fitness coach.
The pair didn't exchange words, although Onana was booed by the home crowd. Onana was then at fault for both of Lyon's goals. Matic had the last laugh.
Hojlund's face spoke volumes Just before the 20-minute mark, Patrick Dorgu pulled a pass back to Rasmus Hojlund inside the box. It was a huge opportunity, but Hojlund failed to connect sweetly with the ball and fluffed it. The camera panned to Hojlund's disappointed face and it spoke volumes, as he knew he should have found the back of the net.
United don't create many chances, which made Hojlund's miss feel worse, and he might have converted if he was a striker playing with confidence. Hojlund becomes frustrated when his teammates don't pass to him - but he's not clinical when they do. He's stuck in a rut and will be desperate to put this campaign behind him.
Travel chaos for supporters There was chaos before the 2022 Champions League final in Paris. There was more chaos in Lyon before the game on Thursday night, as fans were let into the ground one at a time and there were huge queues at the turnstiles, meaning some supporters missed kick-off. Others felt it was better to stay in the city centre, believing the journey wasn't worth the hassle.
UEFA cannot be held responsible for a metro breakdown, which took place in Lyon, but they must ensure better organisation around grounds on matchdays for a safe experience for supporters..
