Ten Hag defends under-fire Onana ahead of Newcastle v Man Utd
Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag insists he will not drop underperforming goalkeeper Andre Onana despite another hapless display. Onana’s two errors against Galatasaray this week left United facing a dismal exit from the Champions League but Ten Hag has defended the Cameroon international.
Onana let two free-kicks by Hakim Ziyech slip through his grasp in a dismal European display. United led 2-0 and 3-1 in the crunch Group A clash but drew 3-3, with Onana partially to blame for his mistakes.
It was not Onana’s first set of mishaps since his £43million switch from Inter Milan in the summer. Some have suggested that the 27-year-old could be set for a spell on the sidelines in a bid to overcome his poor form.
However, Ten Hag has issued a defiant defence of Onana, insisting that he will keep his place. The Dutchman believes that Onana was among the best goalkeepers in the Champions League as Inter reached the final.
Asked if the former Ajax player could be dropped to the substitutes’ bench, Ten Hag responded: “It won’t help him. In the Champions League, he has so much experience, with Ajax and last year with Inter Milan.
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“Last year he was, with [Manuel] Neuer and [Thibaut Courtois], the best goalkeeper, so he’s a great keeper.
“He has the potential, so we have to work on him so that he does it consistently and we will work with him and we will support him. The manager, coaches and players all support him.”
Ten Hag also claimed that Onana is ‘statistically’ the second-best goalkeeper in the Premier League this season. Onana will likely continue in goal when United face Newcastle on Saturday evening.
“If you analyse it well then you see he is the second-best goalkeeper in the Premier League based on stats, so his expected defending goals is the second best in the Premier League,” the United boss continued.
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“He’s doing well. Also he knows that in the Champions League he makes some mistakes, but all over you see the first five months he is doing particularly well.
“You have seen how he reacted to a bad performance like in Munich. At Burnley he was outstanding. He is a strong character, he is a personality and he will deal with it.”
It comes with United unsure over whether Onana will be available to play for them during the opening months of 2024 due to the Africa Cup of Nations, which runs from January 13 to February 11. Onana is yet to decide whether he will represent Cameroon at the tournament, although his country could reportedly apply for him to face a month-long ban if he decides to remain in England.
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