After a weak start in the job as Manchester United’s first goalkeeper in 2023, Andre Onana, still brimming with confidence, came out and told the world what was going to happen: “Will you tell me that in six months’ time, the best goalkeeper in the Champions League could be the worst in the world? Nope. Everything is temporary”, I know it’s going to be fine. If not today, then it will be tomorrow, if not tomorrow, then the day after tomorrow,” the goalkeeper told Sky Sports in December 2023. Not many months later, a former United player called the same man “the worst goalkeeper in club history”. English Goal is “limiting” itself to the worst United signing in 20 years.
Because with Andre Onana now disappearing to Turkish football, his good reputation from the Inter Milan era has been surpassed by the “Worst signing last 20 years” headlines in the English media.
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English Goal gives us an analysis of how the “impossible” could happen, under the title: “Farewell Andre Onana – the worst Man Utd signing of the past 20 years”:
“There was a lot to blame for United’s disastrous 2024-25 season, in which they finished 15th in the Premier League table, but Onana was the epitome of their failure. He became an easy target for opposing teams and constantly undermined his teammates’ efforts with his staggering ineptitude between the sticks.”
“Onana has made countless mistakes during his 102 games in a United shirt, and not all of them have been punished. If they had, it’s entirely possible that Amorim’s team would have been in a real fight to avoid relegation last season. Officially, only 22 of his mistakes have led to him conceding goals, but that’s still an insanely high number considering he’s only been at Old Trafford for two years.”
“Many of these have also come in extremely important matches. In fact, Onana was almost solely responsible for United’s exit from the Champions League in the 2023-24 group stage, scoring 15 goals as the team finished bottom of a group with Bayern Munich, Copenhagen and Galatasaray. He somehow let a tame shot from Leroy Sané slip under him in a 4-3 defeat to Bayern Munich on matchday, before sending the ball straight to Dries Mertens as United were 2-2 down with Galatasaray in their second game at Old Trafford, forcing Casemiro to tackle the Belgian with a red card.”
“United lost 3-2 that day, and only managed to win 3-3 in the second leg in Turkey, effectively securing their early knockout. Onana was beaten by two free kicks from Hakim Ziyech, the second of which he pushed into the net from a central position despite not being under any pressure. “I’m not sure what he’s really trying to do, to knock it away with his right hand? It’s weak,” United legend Paul Scholes told TNT Sports after the game. “He makes people nervous, he makes the defense nervous, he makes the whole team nervous. He makes simple saves look very, very difficult.”
“Before the Europa League quarter-final against Lyon, Onana had the audacity to claim that United were ‘much better’ than the French team, which led to a sharp reaction from Nemanja Matic. ” If you’re one of the worst goalkeepers in Manchester United history, you have to be careful what you talk about,” said the Lyon midfielder, who played for the Red Devils between 2017 and 2022.
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Onana responded with criticism of Matic’s trophyless spell at Old Trafford, only to prove the Serbian right with a shocking performance in the first leg at the Groupama Stadium. The former Ajax goalkeeper was hopelessly fooled by a free-kick from Thiago Almada in the first half, and with United leading 2-1 in the final minute of injury time in the second half, he fumbled a shot from Corentin Tolisso straight into the path of Rayan Cherki, who was then able to score a dramatic equaliser from close range.
Manchester United won the game, but Onana’s weaknesses were again sadly apparent. We wish Onana the best of luck on her journey – outside Old Trafford. Whether the goalkeeper is the weakest signing in twenty years, that is debatable. There are plenty of candidates.
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