Ex-Man Utd star Nemanja Matic opens up on feud with 'arrogant' Andre Onana after infamous 'worst-ever goalkeeper' jibe

In the build-up to that quarter-final first leg, Onana said United were "way better" than their French opponents. 

"We all know the importance of this game, we will go there with the winning mentality," he told reporters. "We have to go there and show who we are. If we are focused, stay compact and together and follow the gameplan we will be winning the game. Of course, it’s not going to be easy, but I think we are way better than them."

Matic, who played at Old Trafford between 2017-22, didn't hold back in response to Onana's comments.

Before Onana made a number of mistakes across both legs, Serbian international Matic retorted that the ex-Inter Milan ace lacked respect and that he was one of the worst stoppers to don a United shirt. 

"I don't know. To say something like that, you need to have courage," Matic replied. "I respect everyone, but I need to answer. When you're one of the worst goalkeepers in Man Utd's history, you need to take care about what you are talking. If David de Gea, Peter Schmeichel or Van der Sar said that, I will question myself. But if you are statistically one of the worst goalkeepers in Man Utd's modern history, then he needs to show that, before he says so. We will see."

Not long after, former Ajax star Onana responded again, this time pointing out that he had won one trophy to Matic's zero at United. 

He wrote on X: "I would never be disrespectful to another club. We know that tomorrow will be a difficult game against a strong opponent. We focus on preparing a performance to make our fans proud. At least I’ve lifted trophies with the greatest club in the world. Some can’t say the same."

In a dramatic two-legged tie, that ended in a 7-6 United aggregate win after the second fixture went to extra time, Onana's mistakes didn't quite come back to haunt his team. In the end, the Red Devils squeaked through before losing to Tottenham in the final. Fast forward to the present, and the Serb has softened his stance towards Onana. He even called him a "great" keeper who is "not a bad guy".

"I said what I said before the game, just because he was a bit arrogant," the Sassuolo player told FourFourTwo. "He said, ‘We’re way better than Lyon.’ I don’t think you say that before a quarter-final in the Europa League. I wanted to put more pressure on him with my answer, and he made that mistake. I don’t know if our second goal was his mistake or a half-mistake. He’s a great goalkeeper – he had a good couple of years at Ajax, and at Inter. He could have done better at United, but in the circumstances at the club, there was too much pressure on him. If you ask me now though, I don’t think he’s a bad guy."

Both Onana and Matic are at different teams now, with the former on loan at Trabzonspor, and the latter playing in Serie A. Now that the dust has settled, Matic may have won this war of words, even if he is keen to let bygones be bygones.