Lyon’s UEFA Europa League campaign came to a frustrating end on home soil, as they were outplayed by Celta Vigo in a night shaped by an early turning point. The result also marks an exit for Paulo Fonseca and Roman Yaremchuk, whose side simply couldn’t cope with the circumstances.

The tie, finely balanced after a draw in the first leg, swung dramatically in the 19th minute. Moussa Niakhate was shown a straight red card for a dangerous challenge, leaving Lyon to battle with ten men for the majority of the match. From that moment, the hosts were on the back foot.

Despite the numerical disadvantage, Lyon showed resilience in the first half, with Dominik Greif producing a series of confident saves to keep the score level. However, the pressure from Celta Vigo eventually told after the break.

On 61 minutes, Javier Rueda broke the deadlock, finishing off a well-worked move to silence the home crowd. Paulo Fonseca attempted to shift the momentum with substitutions, but the changes failed to spark a comeback. Roman Yaremchuk, who started the match, was withdrawn at half-time as Lyon searched for solutions.

Any lingering hopes were extinguished late on, when Ferran Jutgla added a second goal, putting the result beyond doubt. To compound a miserable evening, Nicolas Tagliafico was sent off in stoppage time, reducing Lyon to nine men.

2025-26, Europa League

Lyon - Celta 0:2 (0:0)
Goals: Rueda, 61 (0:1); Jutgla, 90 (0:2)

Lyon: Greif; Tagliafico (till 90); Abner (Moreira, 67); Niakhaté (till 19); Mata C.; Kango; Morton T. (Fofana M., 82); Tolisso; Nartey (Mangala O., 67); Endrick (Šulc P., 67); Yaremchuk (Tessmann, 46)
Substitution: Tessmann (from 46); Mangala O. (from 67); Šulc P. (from 67); Moreira (from 67); Fofana M. (from 82)
Bench: Descamps R.; de Carvalho; Merah; Karabec; Hamdani
Yellow Cards: Tagliafico 81, 90
Red cards: Niakhaté 19', Tagliafico 90'

Celta: Radu A.; Starfelt (Aidoo, 46); Carreira; Rueda; Alonso M.; Rodriguez J.; Moriba; Vecino (Sotelo, 81); Swedberg (Alvarez H., 46); Lopeez F. (Jutgla, 57); Durán (Aspas, 57)
Substitution: Aidoo (from 46); Alvarez H. (from 46); Jutgla (from 57); Aspas (from 57); Sotelo (from 81)
Bench: Villar; Fernandez Man.; Núñez Ál.; Domínguez C.; Ristič M.; Antañón; El-Abdellaoui
Yellow Cards: Swedberg 33; Starfelt 43; Lopeez F. 53; Rodriguez J. 83; Rueda 89