Tag: Andre Onana

Andre Onana Agrees Man United Exit with Trabzonspor Loan Imminent

Andre Onana has reportedly agreed to leave Manchester United, with a loan move to Turkish side Trabzonspor now imminent. The 29-year-old has fallen down the pecking order at Old Trafford after a string of disappointing performances between the sticks.

Several reports have suggested that Man United were not looking to sign a new ‘keeper in the early stages of the window but were force into action following their shock Carabao Cup defeat to Grimsby.

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Ruben Amorim’s side have since secured the signing of Senne Lammens for a reported fee of £21 million from Belgian side Royal Antwerp.

Now, according to transfer guru Fabrizio Romano, Onana has given the green light ahead of a loan move to Turkish side Trabzonspor.

It’s understood that the deal is a straight loan and will not include a fee or a potential option or obligation to buy next summer.

Andre Onana has cast major doubt on his Manchester United future, admitting he ‘doesn’t know’ if he will still be at the club next season.

The Cameroon international endured another unconvincing season at Old Trafford, marked by a series of high-profile errors that have sparked suggestions his days at Old Trafford could be numbered.

Reports have suggested Ruben Amorim is open to replacing the former Inter Milan star this summer, with Saudi Arabian clubs interested in offering him a route out of Manchester.

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United have been linked with possible replacements in Eintracht Frankfurt’s Kaua Santos, while recent reports have suggested Aston Villa’s Emiliano Martinez is eager to join the club.

Onana appeared at an event in Burkina Faso where he was quizzed on his future by journalist Stéphane Bassalia Ouattara.

‘” Will I leave? I don’t know, we’ll see!’ Onana said, Actu Cameroun report.

Andre Onana will be recalled for Manchester United’s season-defining Europa League quarter-final second leg against Lyon after his costly goalkeeping errors in the first leg, manager Ruben Amorim  has  confirmed.

The 29-year-old Cameroon international, who was to blame for the two goals that United conceded in last week’s 2-2 draw in France, was axed for Sunday’s 4-1 defeat at Newcastle.

Back-up goalkeeper Altay Bayindir played at St James’ Park but Amorim told his pre-match press conference that Onana would be back in goal today, saying he was confident he would be “really good”.

“Onana, he will play tomorrow,” Amorim said at his pre-match press conference.

“As a coach, and also as a former player, I try to do things that can help a player in this situation,” added the United boss. “Sometimes we talk about managing players physically. We have to manage them also mentally but then they have to return to competition, and Onana is ready.

“He had one weekend that I felt it was better for him to not play, and a good thing for Altay to play. This week, my thinking was to put Onana to play.”

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Amorim was pressed on whether United would need to sign a new goalkeeper in the summer transfer window after an inconsistent season from his number one.

“My answer is that we need to improve every position on the field,” he said. “Goalkeeper is the same, we can work with Andre.

“If our team scores more goals and is more dangerous on the forwards and the strikers, we will defend better. Andre Onana already proved that he is a top player at Inter (Milan).”

Former United captain Harry Maguire also defended Onana, saying he had proved during his career that he is an “excellent goalkeeper”.

“He’s going to be there tomorrow night,” he told reporters. “He is a big personality, a big character and he will be looking forward to the game. He will want to show everyone again what he is about.

“Playing in front of Andre, it’s great. I have confidence in Andre, he has had a fantastic career. He has got great experience and we all know he is an excellent goalkeeper.”

Amorim also confirmed that forward Joshua Zirkzee would miss the rest of the season, adding to the club’s damaging injury list.

The Netherlands international, 23, limped off in the second half of Sunday’s defeat at Newcastle after suffering a hamstring injury.

“Joshua is out for the season,” said Amorim. “He will not play more this season, let’s prepare him for the next one.

“It is tough for him, especially in this moment. He is improving in all aspects and it is hard for any player to stop.”

United have endured a terrible season in the Premier League but can still end their campaign on a high by winning the Europa League, which would guarantee them a place in next season’s Champions League.

Amorim said qualification for Europe’s top club competition would give United’s budget a major boost and “can change everything”.

“But you can see it in both ways,” he said. “If you have the Champions League, it’s going to be tough to play against top teams on Wednesday and then top teams in the Premier League.

“We are in the moment that you can feel that the team needs a lot of work. A lot of work means a lot of time to train.”

Andre Onana has hit back after Nemanja Matic called him “one of the worst goalkeepers in Manchester United’s history”, highlighting the Lyon midfielder’s trophyless spell at Old Trafford in a spicy build-up to Thursday’s Europa League clash.

Ruben Amorim’s team travel to face the French side for the first leg of their quarter-final, battling to rescue a dismal season.

Cameroon international Onana said after Sunday’s 0-0 draw against Manchester City that overcoming Lyon, fifth in Ligue 1, was “not going to be easy, but I think we are way better than them”.

That bullish remark was put to the normally understated Matic on the eve of the match.

“You know, I respect everyone but to say that then you need to give the answer,” said the Serbia international, who also had a spell with Chelsea in the Premier League.

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“If you are one of the worst goalkeepers in Man United’s history, you need to take care of what you are talking (about).

“If David de Gea or Peter Schmeichel or (Edwin) Van der Sar said that, then I would question myself.

 “But if you’re one of the statistically worst goalkeepers in Man United’s modern history, then he needs to show that before he says (anything). We will see.”

Onana then posted a response on X, having a dig at Matic, who did not win a trophy during his time at United, though he collected silverware while he was at Chelsea.

“I would never be disrespectful to another club. We know that tomorrow will be a difficult game against a strong opponent,” said the Cameroon international.

“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.”

United paid around £47 million ($60 million) to sign Onana from Inter Milan in 2023 as a replacement for De Gea and he won the FA Cup in his first season.

Only two goalkeepers have kept more clean sheets than his total of nine this season in the Premier League and he is capable of spectacular saves.

But the 29-year-old has made several costly errors during his United career and his reliability continues to be questioned.

Despite his sharp words about Onana, Matic said he “will always keep United in my heart” and hopes they eventually turn things around under former Benfica teammate Amorim.

The midfielder is grateful to the United manager for helping him settle in Portugal and believes he can succeed at Old Trafford with the right support.

“In football today people don’t have time but I’m sure he’s the right profile,” he said. “He’s a young coach, with lots of energy. He needs support.

“It’s hard in the Premier League if things are not right. It’s so difficult to turn things (around) in a short period, but step by step I believe that he can do very good. But I hope that he will not start tomorrow.”

The dour 0-0 draw with City at the weekend left United languishing in 13th place in the Premier League – on track for their worst league finish for at least 35 years.

The Europa League offers them their only route back into Europe next season. Failure to win the trophy in Bilbao next month would have severe repercussions for a club already struggling financially.

Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana has won the FIFPRO Impact Award for humanitarian work, for the medical care his foundation provides to underprivileged communities in Cameroon and other countries in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Doctors have performed more than 1,200 surgical operations over the past three years in collaboration with the 28-year-old’s Andre Onana Foundation, which works with medical professionals to provide surgery and care for people, particularly children.

The honour is part of FIFPRO’s Annual Merit Awards that recognise players giving back to their communities. The global soccer players’ union will donate $10,000 to Onana’s foundation.

“When I passed through Barcelona, Amsterdam and Milan on my way to Manchester United, I had people who helped me on that journey. When I was down, they gave me a hand so that I could stand up,” Cameroonian Onana said on FIFPRO’s website. “I’ve never forgotten the help I received.

“Because of the people in the past who supported me, I feel I have a responsibility to give back and help others.”

Onana said the plan when he started the foundation was to help blind children in Cameroon, but it has since grown to become an NGO, bringing doctors and surgeons, mainly from Spain, to Africa to perform procedures.

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Onana’s United teammate Marcus Rashford won the award in 2020 for his campaign to continue free school meals for disadvantaged children in the United Kingdom when schools were closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Finland international Linda Sallstrom won FIFPRO’s Player Activism Award for speaking out on human rights issues, such as equality, racism and democracy. In March, she confronted fans in Gothenburg, Sweden who she said made misogynistic slurs against her and her teammates.

Former South Korea goalkeeper Ga-Ae Kang won the Player Voice for leading efforts by Korean footballers and the country’s player union KPFA to improve employment conditions for female players and raise the visibility of the Women’s K League.