The war on the pitch between Olympique Lyon and Manchester United is yet to begin but the battle off the field is already getting extremely heated.
On paper, this fixture shouldn’t be a cause for concern for Man Utd but then again, if fixtures were played on paper, United wouldn’t be 13th in the league either.
At least they have played like their best self in Europe this season which would fill the players with confidence.
Olympique Lyon Sidney Govou has been rubbed the wrong by by the confidence of Andre Onana who said United are “way better” than Lyon. He’s fired back with a brutal barb.
Sidney Govou on Lyon vs Man Utd
There’s a feeling that Lyon need to strike the first blow and win their home game in the first leg to set the sweat flowing in Manchester.
Lyon have some injury worries in the lead-up to the fixture but they still have a squad with some extremely capable individuals who can turn the game on their day.
One of them is Man Utd target Rayan Cherki, and that is the fact that is giving Lyon legend Govou confidence ahead of the meeting.
Speaking to French outlet Maxifoot, Govou, who won a remarkable seven league titles with Lyon, fired back at United after Onana’s statement with some hard truth bombs.
He said: “You have to be careful in football, but from what I’ve seen of Manchester United recently… I’m not going to say I’m not worried, it’s still a name, you never know, there are great players. But honestly, this team doesn’t scare me at all.
“(Against Manchester City) There was no rhythm, I didn’t find them enterprising for a derby. It’s not from one day to the next where you switch and say to yourself ‘it’s the European Cup, we’re going to become exceptional’, it’s been working for some time. I think and I hope that this Manchester will have difficulty in Lyon.”
Man Utd need to be quietly confident vs Lyon
It is no secret that United are favourites against Lyon and that might be what drove Onana to say that United are “way better than Lyon”.
However, he missed the “quiet” part because saying such stuff out loud only resulting in one thing – the underdog being driven to topple the giant.
The siege mentality is now created in the Lyon dressing room and the supporters reading Onana’s comments will be determined to make it a cauldron for the first leg.
Having said that, Onana is correct in spirit because United do need to believe they’re better than the opposition so as to not be dominated.
Ultimately, the game which already held the keys to United’s whole season just got a lot more spicier.
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