Andre Onana is poised to leave Manchester United on a season-long loan to Trabzonspor after the club signed Senne Lammens for £18million on transfer deadline day
Andre Onana
Andre Onana is heading out on loan(Image: Getty Images)
Rio Ferdinand is glad to see the back of Andre Onana at Manchester United, having “suffered” him over the past year. Onana is leaving United for a season-long loan with Turkish side Trabzonspor following the arrival of Senne Lammens in the summer transfer window.
Onana has been the first-choice goalkeeper since moving to Old Trafford from Inter Milan in 2023. But his shaky performances saw Altay Bayindir take the No.1 role this season before Lammens arrived in a £18million move from Royal Antwerp on transfer deadline day.
The former Ajax goalkeeper, who was signed by Erik ten Hag, has therefore agreed to join Trabzonspor for the 2025/26 campaign. United will not receive a loan fee, while the Turkish side won’t have the chance to sign the Cameroon international permanently either.
But, speaking on Rio Ferdinand Presents, former United defender Ferdinand is happy that the club have found a solution. “I think [Omar Berrada], who is running the football operations at the club, I think he's made the point that they're not going to have players sitting around that are not worthy of being at the football club anymore,” he said.
“They're not going to have players that either aren't good enough, haven't performed well enough or are not the right people to be at the football club. He's not going to have them around like bad smells. I think, for far too long, we've had at that at the football club.
“We've been forced to keep players because of bad financial situations that the club have put us in with players and we've had to keep them here, sit with them and had to suffer some of these players.”
Ruben Amorim began the summer by creating a ‘bomb squad’ of unwanted players, which included Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho, Antony, Alejandro Garnacho and Tyrell Malacia. United did eventually manage to offload all of those players, except Malacia, while Rasmus Hojlund, Victor Lindelof and Christian Eriksen also left the club.
Rio Ferdinand speaking on a podcast
Rio Ferdinand is happy to see Andre Onana replaced
The bomb squad approach was controversial at United, but Ferdinand ultimately feels it has been vindicated. “I think this is a step in the right direction,” Ferdinand added. “As happy as I am with the players that are coming in and providing a difference in terms of speed, dynamism, pace and goal threat, I'm as pleased, if not more, with the way they've got players out that the club deemed weren't right to be there.
“That side of it has been as important, if not more, than the incoming players because I think it sends out a fantastic message and a strong message to the players that are there: you ain't hanging about here if you ain't what we want.
“That's what it should be like at every club. If you're not right for the football club, you've got to get out. That's why I'm so strong on it when a player wants to go, he should be able to force and go, ‘I think it should work both ways’.”
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