Thursday, April 17th, Old Trafford dresses for a big occasion as it hosts the second leg of one of the most anticipated and balanced UEFA Europa League quarter-finals: Manchester United vs Olympique Lyon. Excluding the home advantage, both teams have an equal chance of reaching the semi-finals, as they drew 2-2 last week at the Groupama Stadium in a match that highlighted all their strengths and weaknesses—high-scoring yet defensively fragile. Manchester United, in particular, may feel more regretful after conceding the equalizer in stoppage time, despite having taken the lead at 1-2 through Zirkzee, due to yet another error from their goalkeeper Onana. However, the Red Devils must move past this and focus solely on progressing to the next round—the only objective left in a season that would otherwise be considered a failure if they don’t win the Europa League. A different scenario for Olympique Lyon, who are dreaming of winning their first major international trophy and are still in the fight for a Champions League spot in Ligue 1, thanks to impressive results under the guidance of former AC Milan manager Paulo Fonseca.

Manchester United's Recent form and Key Stats

Manchester United suffered a 4-1 defeat against Newcastle in their latest Premier League match, extending their winless streak to four games. Across their last 5 matches in all competitions, they've recorded 2 losses, 2 draws, and 1 win, scoring 6 goals and conceding 7 (averaging 1.2 scored and 1.4 conceded per game).

The Red Devils, the only unbeaten team left in this season’s Europa League, have performed strongly at home in this competition, with 4 wins and 1 draw, averaging 2.4 goals scored and 1 conceded per match. Overall, United have lost just one of their last 22 Europa League matches.

Olympique Lyon's Recent Form and Key Stats

Olympique Lyon arrive at Old Trafford in high spirits, coming off 3 unbeaten matches and a 1-3 away victory against Auxerre in Ligue 1, with goals from Mikautadze, Cherki, and Lacazette. This win lifted them to fourth place, just two points behind second—fully in the Champions League race.

Fonseca’s team has collected 6 wins, 4 draws, and just 1 loss (back in October against Besiktas) in this season’s UEL campaign. They've scored 27 goals and conceded 13, for an average of 2.45 scored and 1.18 conceded per game. Away from home, Lyon are unbeaten in their last 10 Europa League away matches.

Manchester United vs Olympique Lyon Prediction and Tactical Overview

Much like the first leg at the Groupama Stadium, the second leg is expected to be full of action and goals, as both teams need a win to advance to the semi-finals.

These are two of the most prolific attacking teams in the Europa League, but they also leave a lot of space at the back—especially Lyon, who have failed to keep a clean sheet in their last 5 matches across all competitions.

We could see a cagey start, but the game is likely to burst into life once a team takes the lead. Lyon could be dangerous here, having scored first in 6 of their last 8 games.

For these reasons, the BetMines algorithm prediction for Manchester United vs Olympique Lyon is that both teams will score, as has been the case in each of Lyon’s last 5 games in all competitions.

• The BetMines algorithm prediction for Manchester United vs Olympique Lyon predicts that both teams will score at least one goal at 63%.
• The BetMines algorithm prediction for Manchester United vs Olympique Lyon predicts that at least one of the two teams will not score a goal at 37%.

Manchester United vs Olympique Lyon Predicted Lineups

Manchester United (3-4-2-1): Onana; Mazraoui, Maguire, Yoro; Dalot, Ugarte, Casemiro, Dorgu; Garnacho, Bruno Fernandes, Hojlund. Manager: Amorim

Olympique Lyon (4-3-1-2): Perri; Maitland-Niles, Mata, Niakhaté, Tagliafico; Veretout, Tolisso, Akouokou; Almada; Cherki, Mikautadze. Manager: Fonseca