On Thursday night, Olympique Lyonnais went to Manchester United for the return match of the quarter finals of the Europa League, a crucial meeting. According to information sources, the Ivorian midfielder Paul Akouokou could find his place in the 11th start, a decision that would surprise some observers. The Portuguese technician Paulo Fonseca, after having tested different configurations during the round-trip match, might well trust Akouokou, who, despite a hot outing at the previous meeting, had demonstrated a significant commitment and a significant offensive involvement. This potential tenure would leave aside other elements, thus changing team composition and stressing the coach’s willingness to rely on a specific strategy to face the Red Devils.

In the case of a composition similar to that of the all-round game, the Lyon midfielder would have an interesting configuration, with a central hinge composed of Clinton Mata and Moussa Niakhaté, and laterals such as Nicolas Tagliafico and Ainsley Maitland-Niles, the latter returning to England. Corentin Tolisso, for his part, should occupy a more offensive role, evolving just behind an attack line composed of Thiago Almada, Rayan Cherki and Georges Mikautadze. This configuration, if confirmed, would demonstrate the coach’s satisfaction with the performance of his players during the game-go, and his intention to continue in the same direction.

The alignment of a team similar to that of the all-round match would therefore be a first surprise in this European evening for Olympique Lyonnais. Although the information is subject to confirmation in the hours prior to the kick-off, the possibility of Paul Akouokou being titularized, and the Lyon team aligned in a configuration similar to that of the one-way game, raises expectations and uncertainty about the strategy Paulo Fonseca intends to use to hope for a favorable result on the Manchester United field.