Manchester United are now ready to accept new offers for Andre Onana
Manchester United started the new season in the same style as they ended last year—full of expectations and ended in disappointment. The 1-0 defeat against Arsenal showed that the change at Old Trafford is still incomplete. In the opening minutes, the team showed energy, passing was sharp, and movement was sharp, but as soon as Altay Bayindir made a mistake in handling the ball properly on a simple corner, the whole balance was upset.
Riccardo Calafiori scored with an unpressurized header, and United’s efforts collapsed. Benjamin Sesko came on later, Bryan Mbeumo created a chance to equalise, but his shot went wide, and the header was saved by David Raya. Thus, United lost three points by their own hands.
Andre Onana’s difficulty and the search for a new goalkeeper
One of Manchester United’s biggest pains in the last season was their goalkeeper. Andre Onana was expected to strengthen the defence, but his mistakes spoiled many matches. After losing the Europa League final and falling to 15th place in the Premier League, the club felt that a change in the goalkeeper’s position was necessary. Now there are reports that the club are seriously considering selling Onana.
Manchester United are now ready to accept new offers for Andre Onana .
Andre Onana (Via X)
United’s former chief scout Mick Brown indicated that the club no longer consider Onana a part of their plans. According to him, the club have internally accepted that the 29-year-old goalkeeper is not at the level where United want to go. Brown said that the Red Devils wanted to make a move at the beginning of the transfer window to bring in names like Emiliano Martinez or Gianluigi Donnarumma, but now the situation has changed. Martinez has stayed at Villa, and Donnarumma’s name is being linked with Manchester City.
Still, Brown claimed that United have alternative plans. He believes that even if an offer comes late, the club will be ready to listen to it. The question is whether changing a goalkeeper this late will worsen the balance of the team or improve it. (Via Football Insider).
“Man United are still looking to get rid of Onana.
“The noises coming out of the club give me the impression that they don’t think he’s good enough for what they want to do.
“Fine, if that’s the decision they’ve made, they have to do something about it.
“If offers come in for him late in the window, they’re keen to listen to them.
“Ideally, they’d have been able to move him on earlier in the window and then they could make a move to bring in his replacement.
“But they seem to have missed out on Emi Martinez and Donnarumma looks like if he’s going anywhere it will be to Man City.
“United will have plans in place, though, because they still want to upgrade on Onana.
*“I don’t know if there’s any interest there at the moment, it will be a case of waiting and seeing what comes in, but if something does then they’re ready to listen.*“
Time running out
United must make a tough decision on Onana’s situation now. In our opinion, if the club feel he is not trustworthy, they should sell him sooner or later. Already out of European competition, the pressure is less, and Amorim can break new ground at this opportunity.
Brown says Onana is not worth the ambition, and there is truth in it. We think United should look at a goalkeeper like Mike Maignan. He is stable, calm under pressure and would fit better into building attacks from the back, but we don’t see if he would really move to Old Trafford, so late in the transfer window, and this is definitely an area of concern for United. However, then again, earlier reports claimed that Manchester United are eyeing Senne Lammens as Emi Martinez’s pursuit hits a dead end.
However, it is also true that changing a goalkeeper alone is not the answer. A team that finished 15th last year needs strength in every position. The defence lacks depth, the midfield lacks continuity, and the attack had lost their edge. The goalkeeper is important, but real improvement will only come when the whole team is balanced.
Now, the attack has been sorted, but work still needs to be done on the defensive midfield position and the goalkeeper spot. Alan Shearer earlier warned Ruben Amorim and Manchester United to strengthen their goalkeeping position. United now need long-term decisions, not half measures. Fans have lost hope; now the team have to restore faith through hard work and the right players.