Manchester United defender Leny Yoro has insisted that he and his teammates are on a “revenge mission” to put things right after the disappointment of last season.
United’s looking to bounce back
United endured an extremely poor 2024/25 season that saw them finish a lowly 15th place in the Premier League table – their lowest position in 51 years.
The Red Devils suffered a humiliating 18 top-flight defeats, nine of which came at home. They also finished the season with a -10 goal difference.
There was more heartbreak in store for Ruben Amorim and his players as they fell to a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Tottenham Hotspur in the Europa League final, effectively closing the door on the chance to sneak into the Champions League through the back door.
However, there is a renewed sense of optimism that 2025/26 will bring significantly better fortunes. There have been plenty of positives in pre-season and the club has added three new players to the squad – Matheus Cunha, Bryan Mbeumo and youngster Diego Leon.
United went unbeaten in their tour of the US, winning two games and drawing once as they won the Premier League Summer Series.
After the 2-2 draw with Everton, Yoro spoke to reporters and insisted that he and his teammates are fully aware of what they need to do moving forward.
Yoro opens up on United’s “revenge mission”
Yoro said [as quoted by The Mirror], “When you play for Manchester United, you need to have the mindset of being the best version of yourself. I think what we did last season was a mistake for us.”
“When you’re Manchester United, you cannot be at this position. The fans know it, everyone knows it. I think we understand this. This season will be different for us. It will be like a revenge from last season. We’re a big club. There are a lot of people who want us to fail and we know that. But there are also a lot of people that want us to do it, to do great things.”
He continued, “We just focus on the fans, you know. We don’t care about what they say outside – everyone said bull**** about us last year. But I understand, because we didn’t do really well, but this season will be different, I hope, for us.”
“We don’t need to listen to this and just be focused on ourselves. All of the players in the dressing-room have a lot of quality. I think we need to mix it together and try to do our best.”
On United’s pre-season tour, Yoro remarked, “We had a good tour. We didn’t lose. We know we can do better, but it’s still the pre-season, there are still some things to improve. I think we can be happy with what we did during this tour. I think mentally everyone is ready.”
“We still have one game against Fiorentina to prepare for the new season. But the mindset of the team is to be ready for the first game, ready for the season. I think we are working and training for this, even in the game.”
The 19-year-old emphasised that younger players like him can benefit from the advice of more experienced stars like Bruno Fernandes.
Featured image Marc Atkins via Getty Images
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Derick Kinoti
Derick Kinoti is a football writer at The Peoples Person who has covered Manchester United and the game extensively for many years. He is a keen analyst with expertise in SEO and journalism standards. Derick is convinced Wayne Rooney is the true GOAT and won’t hear otherwise!
