The Real Madrid loanee's insatiable hunger for goals finally bore fruit, sparing Lyon from another defeat and keeping their European ambitions firmly intact.

The 19-year-old Brazilian forward, capitalising on a howler from Celta goalkeeper Ionu Radu, eventually found the net with his sixth attempt of the evening (87th minute, 1-1), marking his maiden goal on his Europa League debut.

That left-footed strike from Endrick – aided by a blunder reminiscent of Luis Arconada’s infamous error against Michel Platini in the Euro 1984 final – leaves Olympique Lyonnais in a strong position ahead of the return leg. It is a vital result for a side currently mired in a slump (five games without a win across all competitions).

Endrick finally makes his mark

Despite their recent dip in form, Olympique Lyonnais—who topped their group during the league phase—arrived in Galicia with a pedigree to maintain, even if they initially lacked the clinical edge and dynamism to dominate proceedings.

They depart the Spanish coast having endured a testing evening, yet bolstered by the belief that a quarter-final berth is well within reach, particularly after playing over half an hour with a numerical advantage.

Prior to the dismissal of striker Borja Iglesias (54th minute), Celta—renowned for being a thorny opponent in La Liga—demonstrated why they belong at this level, proving they can compete with the very best.

The 'Gones' struggled for creativity, frequently resorting to aimless crosses that were routinely repelled by the Celta backline.

They were soon punished by a clinical counter-attack finished by right-back Javi Rueda, who ghosted past Abner Vinicius (25th minute, 1-0) to open the scoring.

On his full professional debut, 19-year-old Steeve Kango was caught for pace during that opening goal, though he attempted to atone with a driving run down the right flank, only to be halted by former Barcelona defender Oscar Mingueza (28th minute).

Olympique Lyonnais were indebted to a fine save from Greif to deny Iglesias (33rd minute)—who was later sent off for catching Clinton Mata with an elbow (55th minute)—and thereafter relied almost exclusively on Endrick's individual brilliance to find a way back.

The young marksman had already come close, seeing a fierce left-footed strike whistle past the side netting (30th minute) before narrowly missing a dangerous delivery from Tyler Morton (39th minute).

The Lyon number 9, clearly desperate to end a month-long goal drought, continued his assault in the second half, but saw his efforts thwarted by Radu (52nd minute) and Matias Vecino (60th minute).

Paradoxically, it was a cross rather than a shot from the Brazilian that nearly resulted in an equaliser for Roman Yaremchuk (76th minute), shortly after Kango had rattled the woodwork (73rd minute).

Ultimately, Endrick’s tenacity was rewarded; he was brought in precisely for this purpose—to provide the decisive moment when his team needed it most.

Javi Rueda

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