Andre Onana’s performance came under heavy scrutiny after his late blunder gifted Lyon a dramatic 2-2 draw against Manchester United in their Europa League quarter-final first leg at the Groupama Stadium.
With Manchester United leading 2-1 in the closing stages, the Cameroonian goalkeeper failed to deal with a low effort from Georges Mikautadze, allowing Rayan Cherki to pounce on the rebound and level the score in stoppage time.
The result leaves United with work to do in the return leg at Old Trafford.
The match was charged with tension even before kick-off, fuelled by pre-game comments from Onana suggesting that United were “far better” than Lyon.
That provoked a fiery response from former United midfielder Nemanja Matic, now with the French side, who slammed Onana as “one of the worst goalkeepers in the history of Man United.”
The drama spilled onto the pitch as Onana’s early calm quickly gave way to costly errors.
Lyon opened the scoring in the 25th minute when Thiago Almada’s curling free-kick deceived Onana and drifted into the net.
The United keeper appeared wrong-footed and slow to react, allowing the home crowd to seize on his mistake with jeers and chants throughout the match.
⏹️ We take a draw to Old Trafford.#MUFC || #UEL
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) April 10, 2025
Despite the setback, Manchester United responded with resilience.
Captain Bruno Fernandes delivered a pinpoint cross that Leny Yoro converted with a powerful header just before the break.
United then appeared to take control late in the second half when substitute Joshua Zirkzee slotted home from close range in the 88th minute, giving the visitors a 2-1 lead and silencing the Lyon supporters—momentarily.
But Onana’s night went from bad to worse in the dying seconds.
He failed to hold onto Mikautadze’s shot, and Cherki, alert and opportunistic, capitalized on the rebound to restore parity and earn Lyon a valuable draw.
The result leaves the tie finely balanced ahead of the second leg at Old Trafford on 17 April.
Leny Yoro with his first goal for Man Utd ⚽️#UEL pic.twitter.com/vlpd5IY7Xz
— UEFA Europa League (@EuropaLeague) April 10, 2025
United will be left wondering how a potential away win slipped through their fingers, while Lyon takes confidence from their late rally and United’s fragile goalkeeping situation.
For Onana, the spotlight will remain intense as questions continue to mount over his reliability in high-stakes fixtures.
