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Yoro can't wait for 'magic' Champions League

Manchester United defender Leny Yoro can't wait to experience the “magic” of the UEFA Champions League when the Reds return to the competition this season.

The 20-year-old Frenchman featured in 32 of 38 Premier League games as Michael Carrick's team secured qualification by finishing third last term.

Now, he's chomping at the bit to make the step up to - and test himself in - the elite European tournament for the first time in his fledgling career.

Yoro represented former club Lille in the UEFA Conference League and impressed on United's run to the UEFA Europa League final after making the move between the two clubs before the 2024/25 campaign.

Those experiences of continental football will stand him in good stead as he prepares for the Champions League, a stage Leny says every footballer on the planet dreams of being on.

“All the players in the world want to play in this competition,” our no.15 told us, in a Carrington interview that first featured inside the new 'Europe' edition of United magazine.

“I did the Conference League, Europa League, and now I’m going to play in the Champions League. So yeah, I think the step is very good.

“It’s a competition with the best players in the world,” he added later. “You play different types of strikers, different types of opponents, and it’s never easy. So you have to be ready, and yeah, I can’t wait to play against these types of players.”

The defender isn't the only one at Carrington with Champions League football on his mind, either.

Yoro has been getting an education on the competition and its special features at the training ground, from those in the dressing room that have been lucky enough to play in it before.

“[The other lads have spoken about] when you train with the Champions League ball and hear the music of the Champions League, it’s just a different atmosphere from the league,” Yoro said.

“We play against different clubs from all over the world, so [they have spoken to me] about the atmosphere and the magic of this competition. Most of them have played in this competition, and everyone says it’s just magic to play.”

Michael Carrick lifts 2008 Champions League trophy
Leny can also lean on the knowledge of his head coach, who started all three of the Champions League finals United reached between 2008 and 2011, including the success over Chelsea in Moscow 18 years ago.

Carrick nervelessly slotted home his penalty in the shootout triumph over the Blues and is a man who understands the historic significance of the competition to the club, and what it will mean for the team to do well in it this season.

“I think everyone knows how important this competition is here. Like you said, the coach already experienced a win in this competition, so he’s going to help us a lot on this,” Yoro explained.

“No pressure, of course, we just want to do well in the competition, and we have a good coach for this.”

The draw for the league phase is due to take place on Thursday 27 August.

How to watch United v Paris Saint-Germain

HOW TO WATCH AND FOLLOW

We’re set for a 16:00 BST start at the 40,000-seater Ullevi Stadium, where tickets are still available for fans planning to be in Sweden for the game.

However, MUTV subscribers won’t miss a minute of the action. You can watch this game - and all of our pre-season matches this summer - live on the club channel, in our app and on ManUtd.com.

There will be exclusive build-up, in-game analysis and post-match content for you to enjoy as part of our coverage, which will begin an hour before kick-off.

Manchester United will face French giants Paris Saint-Germain in Gothenburg in our next pre-season match.

The Reds will be looking for a third successive victory when we take on the Ligue 1 champions on Saturday afternoon (8 August).

It’s a quick return to Sweden for Michael Carrick’s side after our 2-1 win over Atletico de Madrid in Stockholm.

The clash will provide another opportunity for the Reds to get more valuable minutes in the tank, against another high-quality opponent, as the competitive season edges closer.

Recent signing Youri Tielemans and goalkeepers Senne Lammens and Altay Bayindir all returned to training last week, while summer recruit Karl Darlow and striker Benjamin Sesko have been working towards full fitness at Carrington.

It remains to be seen whether we will see any more players involved in the World Cup return this week.

We will announce the squad which will travel to Sweden across our channels on Friday, so keep an eye out for that and other updates throughout the week.

WHICH KIT WILL WE BE WEARING?

After back-to-back games wearing our new adidas away strip, the Reds are set to don our home kit against PSG - like we did against Wrexham.

The last time we faced PSG

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side got off to the perfect start through Romelu Lukaku inside two minutes before Juan Bernat equalised. After PSG missed a host of chances, Lukaku pounced again to put us back in contention before the late drama of a VAR intervention and Rashford’s 94th-minute spotkick.

Marcus was to repeat his late heroics in the French capital again when we faced the Parisians in our opening group match the following season, netting an 87th-minute winner to earn a 2-1 victory.

Rashy was on target again at Old Trafford in the reverse fixture but a 3-1 defeat contributed to us dropping into the Europa League - in which we went all the way to the final, losing on penalties to Villarreal.

🔴🔴🔴Another winning match on the way💯🔥🔥🔥

The boys are ready and hungry to play.👍👍

Bryan Mbeumo had his eyes locked on the goalkeeper as he converted Manchester United's equalising penalty against Atlético Madrid 🔥🔥🔥🔥💯

Three pre-season games down ✔️
Three more to go🔥🔥

Let's keep moving because united we stand 👍👍🔥🔥❤️❤️❤️

When everyone's fit, who makes your Manchester United midfield? 🤔🤔🤔

Let's hear from you in the comment section 👇👇👇

Travelling squad for Stockholm🔥🔥🔥🔴❤️

Manchester United have announced our travelling squad for Saturday's Snapdragon Cup fixture against Atletico de Madrid.
Michael Carrick's side are looking to step up preparations for the 2026/27 season against last term's UEFA Champions League semi-finalists.

Carrick will make his selection from a 23-man group, with plenty of Academy representation again on the plane.

Altay Bayindir and Amad are involved for the first time in pre-season, after returning to training at Carrington.

The game comes too early though for Senne Lammens and recent recruit Youri Tielemans, who only reported at our base on Thursday.

TRAVELLING SQUAD IN FULL

Goalkeepers: Altay Bayindir, Tom Heaton, Dermot Mee, Radek Vitek.

Defenders: Harry Amass, Dan Armer, Patrick Chinazaekpere Dorgu, Ayden Heaven, Jaydan Kamason, Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw, Leny Yoro.

Midfielders: Jack Fletcher, Tyler Fletcher, Mason Mount, Andrey Santos, Jim Thwaites.

Forwards: Amad, JJ Gabriel, Shea Lacey, Bryan Mbeumo, Ethan Williams, Joshua Zirkzee.

Surprising 12 young Reds at Carrington🔴❤️❤️👍👍🏟️🏟️🏟️