It’s official: Manchester United are in crisis mode.
The Red Devils kicked off the 2025/26 season with a 1-0 home defeat to Arsenal before succumbing to a 1-1 draw at Fulham. Worse was to come in their third match when they faced off against League Two side Grimsby Town, who scored twice in the opening half-hour. United would force a penalty shootout after Bryan Mbuemo and Harry Maguire scored in the final quarter-hour, where they found themselves within inches of going through after mounting a 4-3
lead, only for Matheus Cunha to squander the would-be winning spotkick. Instead, Grimsby would end up prevailing 12-11 after Mbuemo failed to beat the goalkeeper, eliminating them from the EFL Cup.
Despite only just starting the campaign a month ago, United fans only have two competitions to “look forward to”: the Premier League and FA Cup. The Red Devils closed out August with a 3-2 win against Burnley thanks to Bruno Fernandes’ last-second penalty, but they were knocked back down to Earth in their first match of September as Manchester City demolished them 3-0 at the Etihad. United will be looking to bounce back on Saturday with a visit from reigning Club World Cup winners Chelsea, and one player who will need to come in clutch is Leny Yoro.
Born in Saint-Maurice, France, Yoro joined Lille’s academy in 2017 and quickly ascended the ranks before making his professional debut in a 3–1 Ligue 1 win over Nice on May 14, 2022. At 16 years, six months, and one day old, Yoro became the second-youngest player in Lille history behind Joël Depraeter-Henry, overtaking a certain Eden Hazard. Yoro parlayed that momentum into a positive 2022/23 campaign in northern France, emerging as the club’s fourth-choice center back behind José Fonte, Tiago Djaló, and Alex Sandro, registering 13 Ligue 1 appearances, including 8 starts. However, the departure of captain Fonte to Braga would open the door for Yoro to become a full-fledged starter under Paulo Fonseca.
The 18-year-old played the second-most minutes in Ligue 1 with 3690 minutes in all competitions and helped Les Dogues finish fourth in the table and reach the UEFA Europa Conference League quarterfinals, establishing himself as one of the top young defenders on the continent. All signs pointed to Yoro following in the footsteps of William Saliba, Ibrahima Konaté, Raphaël Varane, and becoming France’s next top center back, with the 18-year-old earning a spot in the 2023/24 Ligue 1 Team of the Season and a nomination for the 2023–24 Ligue 1 Young Player of the Year.
A number of European giants like Paris Saint-Germain, Liverpool and Real Madrid cast their attention on Yoro, but it was Manchester United who won the race, paying €62m and €8 million in potential bonuses, making him the most expensive U18 player of all time. At 18 years of age, Yoro wasn’t just going to be playing for one of the biggest teams in world football – he was going to be wearing the 15 worn by United defensive legend Nemanja Vidić and taking home £5.9m gross plus £1.7m in possible bonus payments per season. Unfortunately for Yoro, things didn’t quite get off on the right foot.
Two weeks after signing for the club, Yoro suffered a metatarsal injury in his left foot in a preseason friendly vs. Arsenal, prompting him to undergo surgery and wait until December to make his debut in English football. Despite this initial setback, Yoro quickly emerged as a key figure in central defense under Ruben Amorim, helping them reach the UEFA Europa League Final. A slender, agile defender, Yoro is capable of breaking the lines with his passing and dribbling forward, but it’s his defensive skills that truly catch the eye. Similarly to Tyler Adams and Michael Lahoud, never gives up on a play and is capable of chasing down an attack and prodding away the ball just when it’s about to leave the opposing forward’s foot. However, on Sunday, he gave a performance that simply wasn’t up to par.
Yoro failed to win a single one of the four duels that he contested, whilst he also made an error leading to a shot and was dribbled past once. He got caught ball-watching for the first goal and was neither close to Phil Foden nor Erling Haaland and in general was a step behind the rest throughout his hour on the pitch. Despite being far stronger than his opponent, Jeremy Doku dominated him from start to finish and bamboozled him to set up Haaland’s opening goal. For a player who has often been one of the bright lights in an otherwise torrid spell, it simply wasn’t good enough.
Can Yoro bounce back vs. Chelsea?
