Never Gonna Stop, declared the red and black tifo displayed at Old Trafford on Thursday night celebrating Manchester United’s past glories in Europe.
That may be so but when will this club stop putting their fans through the wringer like this? When will they stop producing utterly bonkers games of football like this?
It was right up there with the craziest nights in United’s history – and there have been a few.
Sir Alex Ferguson was involved in most of them, but as the new banner was unfurled in the stand named after him, even the great man himself must have been bewildered by what he was witnessing here.
United two goals up before half-time and seemingly cruising to victory in this quarter-final second leg. Lyon coming back to level and then taking it into extra-time before scoring twice more with only 10 men.
United looked dead and buried. But no. This team never stops, remember.
Man United completed a miraculous comeback to reach the Europa League semi-finals
Harry Maguire’s header in the 121st minute saw United edge out Lyon via a 7-6 aggregate win
United had been trailing 6-4 on aggregate with six minutes to go before their last-gasp heroics
They pulled one goal back and then another. As we entered added time at the end of extra-time, Harry Maguire popped up to head the winner and send Old Trafford into ecstasy at the end of a quite incredible night. Three goals in seven minutes. Eighty-seven seconds separating the fourth and fifth goals.
So it’s United, somehow, who go through to face Athletic Bilbao in the semis in May with a chance to return to the Basque city for the final at the San Mames Stadium towards the end of the month.
They can still find salvation from this most hellish of seasons. Still win a trophy and qualify automatically for the Champions League. Still hit the £100million jackpot.
The smoke was still hanging in the air from the pre-match fireworks and tifo unveil when United took the lead from an excellent move that caught Lyon napping in the 10th minute.
Noussair Mazraoui’s pass down the right found Bruno Fernandes free of Paul Akouokou. He played the ball into Alejandro Garnacho who span away from Jordan Veretout and Moussa Niakhate before cleverly pulling it back to Manuel Ugarte, the former Paris Saint-Germain midfielder, who was left unmarked to side-foot home.
United keeper Andre Onana, reinstated here with an opportunity to atone for last week’s errors in a 2-2 draw at the Groupama Stadium, ran over to the Lyon fans who booed his every touch to dance a celebratory jig in front of them while Fernandes led the celebrations around Old Trafford as VAR confirmed that he was just onside and the goal stood.
Goalkeeper Lucas Perri denied Casemiro with a one-handed save and Fernandes rattled the bar with a volley before United extended their lead in added time at the end of the first half.
Maguire floated a pass to Diogo Dalot on the edge of the Lyon box. He wrestled with Nico Tagliafico who went down claiming a foul, but the Swiss officials saw nothing wrong with it and Dalot steadied himself before rifling a shot in off the far post.
Lyon looked set to pull of a remarkable comeback win after going 4-2 up in extra time
But Ruben Amorim’s side pulled off the unthinkable to make sure their season stayed alive
Manuel Ugarte put United 1-0 up early on in the 10th minute after a fast start from the hosts
Diogo Dalot scored a fine goal just before half time to give Ruben Amorim’s side a 2-0 lead
Andre Onana taunted the Lyon fans following the goals amid his spat with Nemanja Matic
Corentin Tolisso pulled a goal back in the 71st minute to ramp up the pressure on United
Garnacho should really have put the tie out of their reach within five minutes of the restart but he fired straight at Perri with only the keeper to beat.
How Lyon made United pay for that. Onana saved Coretin Tolisso’s shot on the turn but he was helpless to stop the Lyon skipper giving his team a lifeline in the 71st minute, nodding home from close range after United had failed to clear Thiago Almada’s free kick..
United were rocking and Lyon stunned Old Trafford with an equaliser in the 78th minute.
Tagliafico met Malick Fofana’s cross with a mis-hit volley which crept over the line inside Onana’s far post despite the keeper’s best efforts to claw it back, Alexandre Lacazette sticking the ball in the back of the net for good measure.
Lyon were reduced to 10 men in a frantic finish when Tolisso was harshly shown a second yellow card for a trip on Leny Yoro, but the drama was only just beginning.
Rayan Cherki, the man pursued by United when he was a teenager, crowned an excellent performance when he rifled through Dalot’s legs and into the bottom corner after the United had got back to dispossess Fofana on the edge of the box.
Then Luke Shaw tripped the excellent Fofana and former Arsenal man Lacazette converted from the spot, both goals sparking a pitch invasion from the Lyon bench. Former United man Nemanja Matic, so critical of Onana last week, looked particularly pleased with himself.
Somehow United rallied. Referee Sandro Scharer was advised to go the monitor by VAR after Almada caught Casemiro late in the penalty box, and Fernandes pulled one back from the spot in the 114th minute.
Lyon then completed a remarkable turnaround as Nicolas Tagliafico equalised six minutes later
Tolisso was sent off at the end of normal time for a second bookable offence in a blow for Lyon
But Lyon started well with 10-men and Rayan Cherki put them ahead with a fine finish
Lacazette then made it 6-4 on aggregate when he slotted home a penalty in extra time
Bruno Fernandes gave United hope with his own penalty before the bonkers ending to the tie
Six minutes later, Fernandes and Casemiro got the ball to substitute Kobbie Mainoo – playing as a false nine – and he cut inside to curl home an equaliser.
The pandemonium inside Old Trafford had barely died down when Casemiro clipped a cross to the far post where Maguire had drifted away from Niakhate and guided a header perfectly, improbably, inside the far post.
This time it was the United staff who poured into the pitch in utter jubilation as the Lyon players stood there in disbelief.
What an incredible game of football. United, still unbeaten in Europe this season, march on to Bilbao with real belief that this is their year.
