Lyon winger Malick Fofana has admitted they made a critical mistake by easing up in Thursday’s Europa League quarter-final second leg clash with Manchester United at Old Trafford.
Lyon were on the verge of qualifying for the semi-finals after coming from 2-0 down to lead 4-2 despite having a player sent off.
But late goals in second half of extra time from Bruno Fernandes, Kobbie Mainoo and Harry Maguire saw United stage a dramatic comeback to win the game 5-4 and advance 7-6 on aggregate.
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Reacting after the disappointing defeat Fofana told French outlet Linternaute: “I think everyone is disappointed. I think we played a very good match. In the end, it wasn’t enough.
“I think we slacked off a bit and we paid dearly for it. The penalty hurt us, the [away] crowd pushed us.
“In the end, we have to be more demanding of ourselves. It’s the first time I’ve felt emotions like that and I’ll remember it for a long time.”
United will now take on Athletic Bilbao in the semi-finals while Tottenham Hotspur will battle Bodoe Glimt in the other semis.
