Onana's nightmare start - Maguire spat, blunders and Man Utd transfer threat
Andre Onana doesn't shy away from criticism - and boy, has he had some.
Manchester United, believed to be working on a restrained budget this summer, shelled out £47million to sign the Cameroonian goalkeeper in what was a seismic shift at Old Trafford. Onana, 27, was chosen as the successor to David de Gea, who after a 13-year stint was axed by Erik ten Hag in a move which was supposed to signify the Red Devils moving up a level.
Fast forward exactly three months since De Gea's departure and the only way United have gone is down. Sat 10th in the Premier League table after eight games, having endured their worst start to a season in 34 years, Onana's struggling start to life at Old Trafford has been a key factor.
So, where's it all gone wrong? And has Onana anything gone right? Let's take a deep dive into his early woes.
Much ado about Maguire
You only get one chance to make a first impression and Andre Onana made a resounding one in pre-season - for better or worse. During his second friendly appearance, the 27-year-old made headlines when he lambasted Harry Maguire following a defensive lapse which allowed opponents Borussia Dortmund in on goal.
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Onana had pulled off an impressive save before springing back up and furiously shouting at his defenders, particularly Maguire, who'd not yet been stripped of the captaincy by Ten Hag. Some fans loved his passion, while critics - like Liverpool hero Jamie Carragher - saw it as something more nefarious.
Carragher wrote in his Telegraph column: "One of the most distasteful incidents of all occurred during the friendly with Borussia Dortmund in July, when new signing Andre Onana started yelling at Maguire, in my view disgracefully playing to the gallery to endear himself to United fans.
Andre Onana went crazy with Harry Maguire during a pre-season friendly against Borussia Dortmund (PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images)"I watched that in disbelief, but it said everything about what has gone wrong. Maguire was still the club captain then. He should have reacted furiously, put Onana in his box and demanded respect. Instead, he has the persona of someone whose confidence and authority is utterly broken."
Onana cleared things up ahead of United's trip to face Bayern Munich in the Champions League, saying: "Harry's a very good guy, I have a good relationship with him, I spoke to him this morning before we took off. What happened there was done straight after the game.
"I don't think we have to give too much to what happened, we are big guys and what happened on the pitch stays on the pitch, we have a good relationship. I'm a very passionate player, I demand a lot of my defenders. We are in this together, being part of a big club is something great."
Andre Onana explained his clash with Harry Maguire (AP)Munich mishap
Much like David de Gea's shaky start to life at Old Trafford, Onana could be questioned on his first run of appearances for United. Allowing saveable shots to sneak past him and escaping a stonewall penalty against Wolves on his competitive debut, supporters tried to give the recently-recalled Cameroon international a chance to bed in and prove himself once the big games came around.
In Munich, Onana geed himself up for a statement performance, speaking to plenty of media outlets pre-match while attempting to improve United's team spirit after a miserable run of three defeats in five Premier League games. Instead, it turned out to be a disaster against Bayern which he's not yet recovered from.
By letting Leroy Sane's low-driven shot spilled across the line, Onana opened the floodgates for a 4-3 defeat which wasn't as competitive as the final score suggested. Post-match, the former Ajax and Inter star requested to face the media again and told TNT Sport : "After my mistake we lost control of the game.
"It's a difficult situation for us, for me especially because I'm the one who let the team down. Because of me we didn't win but we just have to move on. This is the life of the goalkeeper."
Andre Onana's biggest howler to date sparked Manchester United's 4-3 loss to Bayern Munich (Tom Weller/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images)Continued calamities
Fortunately for Ten Hag, his new goalkeeper produced his first truly assured performance of the season next time out, helping the Red Devils pick up a much-needed 1-0 win at Burnley. That was followed by another clean sheet in the Carabao Cup at home to Crystal Palace, who then came back to Old Trafford four days later and remarkably won - not because of Onana, though.
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As the pressure began to mount on Ten Hag, shoddy displays from Onana and the outfielders only continued. Against Galatasaray - ahead of which there was talk of fellow new goalkeeper Altay Bayindir getting the nod - Onana could be held accountable in the build-up to Casemiro's game-changing red card.
He played a pass straight to the opposition while attempting to demonstrate the kind of world-class distribution we saw in last season's Champions League final while he was still at Inter. In fairness, Onana's distribution has been more confident than De Gea's - barring that error - but an injury-hit defence means that he's barely had the chance to gel with a regular back line.
The finger could be pointed at him for Galatasaray's winner, too, as a sour blend of puzzling positioning and poor anticipation gave Mauro Icardi a simple finish. Ten Hag stuck by him once more, though, saying: "We already have seen in games his great capabilities, also his personality after he made mistakes. He will bounce back and I am sure he will in the coming games as well."
No.2 Altay Bayindir is yet to be given a chance since signing for Manchester United (Lewis Storey/Getty Images)Bees leave a sting
Brentford were up next for Onana and co, with the Red Devils now on a run of five defeats in seven games. Ten Hag needed three points and Onana needed a tidy performance - but only one got what they were after.
Following another error from Casemiro in the 26th minute, Brentford broke away and Mathias Jensen fired a tame shot which somehow found its way past Onana's hand after a rather lethargic dive. With the score 1-0 until the 93rd minute, it seemed as if United's nightmare season was about to get considerably worse heading into the international break.
Fortunately for Ten Hag, late substitute Scott McTominay scored two goals in added time to rescue a dramatic three points, and while it alleviates some pressure on the Dutch boss, Onana is still facing the heat. Gary Neville has expressed serious concern over his position; fellow Red Devils legend Peter Schmeichel feels as if he's close to losing the trust of his team-mates; and ex-United striker Garth Crooks went, well, full Garth Crooks.
Have your say! Should Erik ten Hag drop Andre Onana? Join the debate in the comments section.
Andre Onana made another blunder against Brentford on Saturday (James Gill/Getty Images)"It's hard enough trying to win matches when your goalkeeper is in good form, but when he's making errors almost on a weekly basis it makes life very difficult for all concerned," Crooks wrote for BBC Sport.
"Especially when you've had Peter Schmeichel, Edwin van der Sar and David de Gea keeping goal for you during the past 20 years, it becomes very conspicuous when you have a goalkeeper who is not in their class. In fact, Andre Onana is not even on their planet.
"Since the arrival of the Manchester United keeper, he's been either smashing into centre-forwards, letting the ball slip through his fingers or, as was the case against Brentford, beaten by a shot a schoolboy would have been expected to save."
Former Blackburn and Chelsea striker Chris Sutton even believes that United need to make an upgrade in the transfer window, telling the Mail : "I'm not so sure about him. I think Manchester United will make a change. I'm not saying this season but I think at the end of the season they need to get an upgrade on Onana."
For now, Onana can focus on something other than United while on international duty, as Cameroon face Russia and Senegal in friendlies over the next fortnight. Make any more blunders and Bayindir best limber up for his debut against Sheffield United when the Red Devils return to action.
Ten Hag recently confirmed that the Turkish shot-stopper, signed from Fenerbahce in August to play second fiddle, will get a chance "soon," adding: "We also have to progress Altay, that's clear. He makes a very good impression in training, he's really developing, progressing. So we're very happy with that and we are convinced we have the two right goalkeepers in our squad to do the job for us."
Hope isn't lost for Onana, though. After all, look how De Gea bounced back...
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