Disappointing performance would be the first thing I wanted to state.

The amount of passes lost (under no pressure), the incapacity to be fluid when in possession, bad decisions, bad pressing strategy, bad finishing.

There was a bit of all against a talented French side, with an amazing Game Strategy.

But, being totally fair, the team is much better.

This disappointment has no comparison with the disappointment we had a few months back.

The team was still able to be somehow compact and not allowing more chances to Lyon.

Even the chances created, if we analyze the play, there was an overload of players of United in comparison with the French side.

We can’t ask much more than that, creating a Game Model that constantly provokes superiority in the key areas around the ball, with or without the ball.

Average passing quality wasn’t good enough, specially on the build-up, where the defenders despite the good percentages (averaging 94% accuracy), weren’t able to move the team forwards, either by attracting the right player to then release to a teammate with space to take the ball forwards, or them directly trying to connect the Game.

These levels of accuracy come from passes between them (which are sometime useless in hurting the other team) or to the side backs, when the pressing triggers from the home team was clearly the sides, either starting pressing Mazraoui and then Dalot, or Yoro and then Dorgu on the other side.

Besides that, to end the analysis on the defenders, Maguire won 5 of 7 duels, whereas both Yoro and Mazraoui only got 50% of duels won, showing that inconsistency in performances that I spoke before. 

In the midfield, Ugarte and Casemiro, as expected, are playing but yet to find the best balance between their roles to provide what the team needed.

Although their pass accuracy was close to averaging 85%, from 14 duels, they won 3.

They got outnumbered many times in the midfield, once one was often taken to side areas, and that damaged their capacity to intervene successfully.

Offensively, the team struggled (again) with consistency.

Although they were able to create a few chances, even before Lyon’s first goal with Bruno and Højlund having clear chances inside the box to score, the volume wasn’t there.

Let’s bring the data to support this idea:

. The team shot a total of 13 times, but the 3 forwards only got 5 of those (2 on target).

. Dalot was the player that most tried successfully to dribble (3 successful dribbles in 4 attempts), Dorgu got only 1 in 4 attempts, Bruno got 1 in 1 and Garnacho… zero.

. Højlund, clearly in a uninspired performance, touch the ball a total of 10 times…

Therefore, yes, uninspired performance and a, more than that, there was a general lack of understanding of what the Game required.

The team struggled with the pressure on Lyon’s build up, swapped between the normal GK+3+4+3 when pressing, with an individual approach on the side of the ball, to a GK+4+4+2, due to the difficulties felt in the center.

Funny enough, in my perspective, although the spaces was eventually felt at the center, it was the sides that created that space, with Lyon purposely overloading the sides with 4 or more players, outnumbering United, and provoking some United players to be out positioned to then create a superiority and move ahead in nuclear areas, either by finding a direct pass or by fast changing the side of the Game.

And this is the best compliment I can give to Portuguese Coaches, using another very good Portuguese Coach, Paulo Fonseca.

He is someone that hasn’t been successful in some of his recent ventures, mainly recently at AC Milan or at FC Porto a long time ago, maybe because of some dubious career choices but, regardless that, he’s a Coach that I truly respect.

Times made him change, mainly in terms of relationship with the players, and he assumed that after his tenure at FC Porto, when he said “I will never fall in love with the players again” that was an expression that somehow expressed his disappointment with the behavior of some players that he felt he could trust, but he tries his best to be loyal to his Game Model.

As all Coaches, sometimes with more success than others.

His tenures at SC Braga or Shakhtar Donetsk were amazing, but then AS Roma, LOSC Lille and, specially, AC Milan weren’t that bright.

I just hope this adventure at Lyon can help him to return to better stages, even if fighting for the League is almost unrealistic.

But, although biased, that’s a great difference I can perceive when playing against a Portuguese Coach.

The Tactical Analysis and Awareness are great, and Portuguese Coaches have the capacity to adopt strategies to hurt the opponent with ease, as any others.

It comes with pros and cons, as always.

We are less guided by a main Football Culture Dominance, when compared with Spanish Coaches, that are generally all guided by Ball Possession and Positional Play, which eventually hurts us at a National level (mainly at our National Team).

But, on the other hand, we have the unique capacity of winning everywhere in the World of Football.

We use that superior Tactical Awareness and Knowledge of the Game to explore the deficiencies of the other teams and win.

Honors done, back to United, some good news!

Kobbie is back on field, and was important on the 2nd balls, including winning the ball that ended with Bruno assisting Zirkzee to the second goal.

Additionally, Mount keeps playing and getting in shape. 

And at this moment, this is what United needs, players getting fit and ready to help in the rest of the Season.

Finally, Manchester United shown, even in an uninspiring night, that the team is more than capable of surpassing Olympique Lyon at Old Trafford, next week.

More than capable, after yesterday’s match I would even say they are responsible of that.

Growth continues, sometimes more steady that we would prefer.

But it’s process, and we must realize that every match.

In 2 days, another super tough match against Newcastle United, where it’s important to keep the moral up and get all ready for next week’s Europa League match.

That’s the beauty of Football, there’s no easy route!

The talk is to be done on the field.

Let’s go!