Ruben Amorim vowed to do everything in his power to achieve success in the Europa League after Manchester United cruised through to the semi-finals with an impressive 5-4 extra-time win over ten-man Lyon.
The Red Devils looked set to fall short in Thursday's decisive quarter-final second leg at Old Trafford, where their rivals responded to first-half efforts from Manuel Ugarte and Diogo Dalot by scoring four goals in a row.
Goals in quick succession from Corentin Tolisso and Nicolas Tagliafico sent the match into extra time as Lyon fought back despite Tolisso being sent off for two yellow card offences and Ryan Cherki and Alexandre Lacazette rocked United.
But Amorim's men did not give up and secured an unlikely victory, with Bruno Fernandes converting a penalty, followed by a superb goal from Kobbi Mainu in the 120th minute to level the scores and Harry Maguire heading in the winner soon after.
“The sound of the last two goals was amazing and that's something we can carry forward,” said the United manager after a memorable 7-6 aggregate win that secured a semi-final against Athletic Bilbao.
“Ultimately, you get to the semi-finals, but your job is to win it. If you get to the semi-finals and don't win, it's the same feeling. We need to focus on the next stage and try to win the trophy.
“I think that’s why (the ending) we love this sport so much, and all the frustrations that a coach goes through during the season, the bad moments when you have a moment like that, it’s all worth it.
“But then you finish, you calm down and you start thinking about the fact that we have a game (against Wolves) on Sunday. Then we need to make sure all the players are fit to play because we have to focus on the Europa League.”
The competition is the only way for United to secure silverware and qualify for European competition, with the team sitting a lowly 14th in what is sure to be their worst Premier League campaign.
Asked about the significance of the moment, Amorim replied: “I think moments like this can be useful for a lot of players this season, in this context.
“They can create a certain connection between fans and players and we can forget about the current season for a few moments.
“The mood is good today, but tomorrow we have to start all over again. So we have to focus on the next game, make sure the players are ready to go out on the pitch.
“We will have to take risks to keep some players because if you look at our season, the most important thing for everyone is obvious. It is the Europa League.”
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
