Manchester United vs Lyon

Manchester United and Lyon face off for the second round of their Europa League quarter-final at Old Trafford on Thursday evening after sharing a 2-2 draw at Stade de Lyon during the previous match.

The teams who advance through this matchup on aggregate must face either Rangers or Athletic Bilbao in their semi-final tie during the start of May.

In addition to the pre-match fight with Nemanja Matic, Andre Onana failed to defend himself from hostile criticism about his goalkeeping abilities by conceding two goals which secured Lyon's dramatic draw at home.

The final whistle blew as Rayan Cherki sprinted to complete his game-winning strike by converting a loose ball that had escaped Onana's reach. This goal came milliseconds before time expiration in the 95th minute as Zirkzee had just scored in the preceding 88th minute to seemingly secure victory for Joshua's side.

Man United suffered a severe 4-1 loss at Newcastle United in Premier League play during the recent weekend thus sealing their worst ever league points accumulation during the Premier League period.

The 38 points Man United gathered in 32 matches has left them in 14th position with potential 17th-place finishing threat during this Premier League term since they trail the top teams by 17 points and the places behind the eighth team by 10 points.

Les Gones also have a strong away record against English opponents; in their past nine away games in European play, they have only lost once, to West Ham United 3-0 in the 2021–22 Europa League.

However, Lyon has lost both of their previous two trips to Old Trafford, 2-1 in November 2004 and 1-0 in March 2008, and they have only played La Liga powerhouse Barcelona (eight) more times without ever winning in Europe than Manchester United (five). Additionally, in nine prior occurrences, they have drawn the first leg at home and never advanced past a two-leg European knockout match.

Rasmus Hojlund may be Amorim's sole natural striker now that adolescent Chido Obi-Martin is not eligible for Europe. Captain Bruno Fernandes and Alejandro Garnacho, who scored against Newcastle last time out to snap his 27-game goal drought, are expected to join him in attack.

Last weekend, Amorim made the decision to leave Onana out of his matchday squad so that the goalie could "disconnect a little bit" after a difficult stint in goal. Onana will be recalled on Thursday at Altay Bayindir's cost, Amorim has announced.

Lyon's star winger Ernest Nuamah will miss the remainder of the season due to an ACL injury he suffered earlier this month, while Malick Fofana will also miss time due to a knee issue.

Casemiro and Mason Mount will compete for a starting position in center-midfield with Manuel Ugarte, while Harry Maguire and Patrick Dorgu are anticipated to return at center-back and left wing-back, respectively.