A trip to Edinburgh awaits for Manchester United on Wednesday for their second pre-season friendly of the summer, as French giants Lyon tackle their English counterparts at Murrayfield Stadium.
Both teams kicked off the exhibition period with opening wins, as the Red Devils put two unanswered goals past Leeds United while Les Gones edged past Dutch outfit De Treffers.
Match preview
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With a host of Man United's international representatives recovering from their recent exertions, the stage was set for Erik ten Hag's up-and-coming proteges to lay down a marker in Oslo, as Man United and Leeds embarked on a Scandinavian sojourn for their opening pre-season friendly.
Following a scoreless 45 minutes, Ten Hag made his inevitable plethora of changes during the half-time break, and youthful attacking duo Noah Emeran and Joe Hugill both found a way through in the second 45 to seal a 2-0 win for the EFL Cup holders last Wednesday.
That comfortable success over their long-time adversaries also saw new arrival Mason Mount make his non-competitive debut for the 20-time English champions, who are expected to bolster their ranks further this week with the capture of Inter Milan goalkeeper Andre Onana, reuniting Ten Hag with his former Ajax number one.
While the powers-that-be thrash out the final details to bring the Cameroonian shot-stopper to Old Trafford, Ten Hag's existing troops gear up for their sole friendly on British soil before their transatlantic flight to the USA, where Arsenal, Wrexham, Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund provide a quartet of intriguing opponents.
Lens and Athletic Bilbao will also test the Man United mettle before the new Premier League season commences, and while the Red Devils are showing the first signs of restoring the glory days of yesteryear, the same cannot be said for their French counterparts.
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Previously dominating the French football landscape while Sir Alex Ferguson's Man United ran the show in England in the 2000s, Lyon have since found it impossible to keep up with the Paris Saint-Germain financial juggernaut, while Lille, Lens, Monaco and Marseille have also asserted their dominance over the seven-time Ligue 1 champions.
A significant period of change both in the dugout and boardroom saw long-serving president Jean-Michel Aulas step down from his post after 36 years of service, while Peter Bosz's turbulent tenure was brought to an end in October, allowing ex-Man United man Laurent Blanc to take the reins.
Despite a largely positive run of form after the turn of the year and the unexpected Alexandre Lacazette hot streak - which saw the ex-Arsenal man net 27 goals in Ligue 1, only two behind Golden Boot winner Kylian Mbappe - Lyon once again fell short in their efforts to return to continental competition, ending up in seventh place.
During a brief stopover in the Netherlands, Lyon dropped down the divisions to meet amateur outfit De Treffers, and Blanc's side were indebted to a late Jeff Reine-Adelaide penalty for their 2-1 win, after Tino Kadewere had initially cancelled out Coen Maertzdorf's opener.
The friendly run-in does not get any kinder to Blanc, whose side also take on Molenbeek, Celta Vigo and Crystal Palace after the Frenchman's homecoming with Man United, who most recently posted a 2-1 aggregate win over Les Gones in the 2007-08 Champions League en route to European glory.
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Man United are expected to confirm the signing of Onana this week after shaking hands on a £43m deal with Inter, but the goalkeeper will almost certainly not be considered for his debut on Wednesday and should be given his baptism during their upcoming USA tour.
International performers such as Casemiro, Marcus Rashford, Diogo Dalot, Luke Shaw and Bruno Fernandes returned to Carrington over the weekend and will remain in Manchester to build up their fitness levels, but Fred has worked his way back from a knock, while Jonny Evans has also penned a surprise short-term deal and could make his first Red Devils appearance since 2015 here.
Ten Hag also has Rhys Bennett, Tyrell Malacia, Antony, Anthony Martial, Dean Henderson and Donny van de Beek in the infirmary and should therefore field a similar team to the one that put Leeds to the sword in Oslo, and the contest will mark Harry Maguire's first match since being stripped of the captaincy.
Lyon have also been relatively quiet on the incomings front so far, only bringing in right-back Clinton Mata and midfielder Skelly Alvero, but several recognisable names have packed their bags and bid farewell.
Indeed, Houssem Aouar, Romain Faivre, Jerome Boateng, Thiago Mendes and Cenk Ozkacar have all left for pastures new, while French attacker Moussa Dembele - previously linked with Manchester United - has also become a free agent after running down his contract.
Les Gones have already been dealt an early injury blow ahead of the new season, as veteran defender Dejan Lovren was taken off after just 10 minutes against De Treffers with a thigh injury, while key midfielder Maxence Caqueret is nursing a broken hand.
Manchester United possible starting lineup:
Bishop; Wan-Bissaka, Varane, Martinez, Fernandez; Mount, Hannibal, Mainoo; Sancho, Hugill, Diallo
Lyon possible starting lineup:
Lopes; Kumbedi, Sarr, Diomande, Tagliafico; Tolisso, Lepenant, Reine-Adelaide; Jeffinho, Lacazette, Sarr
We say: Manchester United 1-1 Lyon
With Ten Hag already cutting a pessimistic figure over the availability of his side's international players for Wednesday's friendly, a makeshift Red Devils XI may not have it all their own way at Murrayfield.
Lyon were far from excellent in their opening pre-season battle as well, but with more experienced options available to Blanc, we can envisage the former Red Devil holding his old employers to a score draw.
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Ben Knapton
