Leny Yoro’s France debut underlined his potential. Man United must find a way to see more of it

If everything had gone as planned, Leny Yoro would not have made his senior France debut on Monday.

He was only called up as a late addition by Zinedine Zidane after an injury ruled out Real Madrid’s Ibrahima Konate. It feels like a change of fortune for Yoro, whose Manchester United career has been disrupted by injuries and managerial and formation shifts. The 20-year-old ended up playing the full 90 minutes as France came from behind to beat Belgium 4-1, securing a three-point cushion atop their Nations League group.

France’s star-studded attacking substitutes sealed the comeback, with Desire Doue, Rayan Cherki, and Michael Olise (twice) scoring. But Yoro more than pulled his weight: his lofted ball in the 81st minute found Olise for a neat low cross into Cherki’s path for the goal that put France ahead.

That was not a fluke. Yoro’s first involvement was a long pass pinged out to the left wing, and he continued that trend throughout, with the most accurate long balls of any outfielder. From his position at right centre-back, next to Chelsea’s Maxence Lacroix, he made almost twice as many passes into the final third (18) as any other player (Jules Kounde and Eduardo Camavinga were closest with 10). For a debutant, the responsibility he took on in France’s build-up was impressive.

His confidence persisted out of possession, with some brave front-footed defending. Here, as Belgium look to counter-attack, midfielder Hans Vanaken receives the ball expecting time and space to drive forward or pick a long pass. France have committed bodies forward and risk being exposed. Yoro is proactive, quickly closing down Vanaken and stealing the ball. He then immediately looks to help the attack, sprinting to take up a promising position to receive the ball back.

In the second half, his high pressing immediately takes the wind out of a potential Belgian attack, hounding Charles De Ketelaere back towards his own box.

Being so front-footed can be risky but Yoro judged his positioning and the timing of his interventions well. The foundations were just as evident as the flashier moments. Questions have been raised about Yoro’s aerial ability, and he can struggle when drawn into jumping-while-wrestling contests, but he played to his strengths intelligently up against Romelu Lukaku. See below — rather than sticking touch-tight to the striker and trying to put him off, he instead focuses on positioning himself to win the header.

But one of the most impressive elements of Yoro’s performance — partly because this aspect has come under scrutiny — is how well he retained his composure under pressure. Despite the magnitude of the night in his career, and despite France falling unexpectedly behind, he remained unflappable. Here, 1-0 down with 20 minutes to go, see him apparently directing Kounde to play a forward pass; when that option is closed down and Yoro receives the ball back, he is undeterred by De Ketelaere bearing down and instead sends the Belgian forward running straight past him before playing a pinpoint pass through the lines to Kounde.

Yoro looked accomplished, composed, and every inch a senior international — and any France fans who looked into his form after this debut might have been baffled to see he has not started a Premier League match this season. The Frenchman played 90 minutes against Sabah in the Champions League and Brighton & Hove Albion in the Carabao Cup, but has played only 24 league minutes as a substitute.

His Manchester United career has not been smooth. Yoro never had the chance to play for the manager who signed him, with Erik ten Hag sacked by the time he recovered from a foot injury sustained in his first pre-season with the club in 2024. His most frequent minutes came under Ruben Amorim as part of a back three, but his only consistent run of games under Michael Carrick came while Lisandro Martinez was injured in the spring.

“I hope so,” Yoro told reporters in pre-season, when asked if this was the campaign where Manchester United fans would see the best of him. “I did a great season, but I can do much more. I know my potential

“Sometimes people forget that I’m still 20. I still love to learn, still love to improve.”

Yoro’s strong international debut has prompted some online fans to call for him to be restored to United’s starting line-up. It is not hard to see why — but it is also easy to understand why Carrick might be cautious.

Yoro has had positive spells at United, but he has also struggled against physically dominant players. The mistakes expected of a young, developing centre-back are not always forgiven. Against Brighton, a huge groan went around Old Trafford when he gave away possession. TV pundit Jamie Redknapp ferociously criticised his and Ayden Heaven’s defending for Brighton’s equaliser.

Carrick and his coaching staff must strike a difficult balance, pushing Yoro out of his comfort zone to advance his development without bruising his confidence. In certain games, the emphasis will be less on man-to-man physicality and more on defending large spaces. He might also be better served partnering Harry Maguire, who can add that imposing physicality, than Martinez.

There is also the obvious point that for an unimpeachably popular Zidane, selecting Yoro carries little jeopardy. For Carrick, every selection is being scrutinised and if hindsight deems any of them naive or unnecessarily risky, it will increase the pressure.

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It is worth remembering that while there might be a clamour for Carrick to start Yoro against Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday, it was only on September 18, after his performance against Brighton, that the head coach was fielding questions about whether there was a “cut-off point” at which Yoro needed to step up his performances.

“He’s 20 and he’s got a fantastic future ahead of him and a lot of potential,” Carrick replied. “To be at this club and play as a centre-back at such a young age is a challenging position. It’s one that he can do, for sure — and it’s one that Ayden can do — but there’s no cut-off point.

“I’ve got no worries for Leny. He’s doing a lot of good things, and we’ve got to be careful. I won’t make knee-jerk decisions because of one game or one half or one moment in a game. We’ve got a lot of belief in Leny.”

Carrick and his coaches are charged with moulding their belief in Yoro into something more. It will not always be straightforward — but they, and now France, have seen enough to know what the rewards could be.