An uncomfortable conversation is required about Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana - chof 360 news

-Credit:2025 Visionhaus

-Credit:2025 Visionhaus

Just before half-time in last weekend's game against Crystal Palace, Andre Onana made an exceptional save to deny Jean-Philippe Mateta, but the referee didn't realise he'd got his fingertips to the ball and pointed for a goal-kick, instead of correctly awarding a corner to the away team.

Onana reacted to the save by celebrating as if he'd just scored a goal - that was a huge giveaway - and he clearly wanted to let everybody know he got a fine touch to send the ball wide.

Mateta lost that battle against Onana - but the Crystal Palace striker won the war. Mateta fired his side to a 2-0 victory at Old Trafford and Onana's first half save was made redundant.

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Those who attended Old Trafford on Sunday will remember Onana's intervention to deny Mateta in the 40th minute because of his wild celebration. It is unusual for a goalkeeper to celebrate so passionately and it felt telling that he felt the need to highlight a positive contribution.

If Onana's form hadn't regressed in the last few months, would he have celebrated the save like he did? Probably not. The chances are Onana would have kept his head down and avoided attention from the referee, who had made a mistake by failing to recognise it was a Palace corner.

United are in the middle of a bleak season and Onana's form has worsened, so it is no wonder that he instinctively celebrated a save that most in the ground didn't realise he'd made.

"Pressure is for tyres," was the iconic line produced by Alan Shearer during England's win against Switzerland on penalties at Euro 2024. Impressively, England's players remained calm in that shootout, but pressure can play wicked tricks on the mind and Onana is feeling the pressure.

Onana was error prone after signing from Inter Milan and fans questioned whether he was an upgrade on David de Gea. His mistakes in the Champions League meant United finished bottom of their group and he has spoken openly about how difficult those first six months were.

United might need a new goalkeeper.

United might need a new goalkeeper.

Onana struggled and didn't look cut out for the role, but he enjoyed a mostly consistent calendar year of 2024 and it seemed like mistakes had been eradicated from his game.

He won the Premier League's save of the month award for his outstanding double stop against Crystal Palace in September and somehow bettered it against Fenerbahce in October.

The Cameroon international denied Youssef En-Nesyri twice in a matter of seconds as Fenerbahce threatened an equaliser in the Europa League. He got down to his left before springing back to his feet to make another save and Jose Mourinho described the saves as "incredible".

The Manchester Evening News were asked to nominate a few United players for a national-wide Player of 2024 survey and Onana was among the candidates in the running for the award.

Then it all started to go down hill for Onana when United lost 2-0 against Arsenal in December. The 28-year-old conceded two goals from corners and followed that performance with a huge mistake against Nottingham Forest, and another error against Viktora Plzen in the Europa League.

Onana's confidence took a blow and Amorim has given opportunities to Altay Bayindir, unlike the former United manager who preferred to start Onana even in the cup competitions.

Naturally, mistakes are magnified when you're a goalkeeper, but Onana makes too many errors and it's concerning they have crept back into his performances after a positive spell.

Someone who worked with Onana in training last season said he is "so powerful and athletic" and praised his "aggressive movements" in between the posts. He has the profile of a modern goalkeeper, but his distribution can be disappointing considering that's supposed to be one of his strengths.

Does Onana need to be replaced? That's a question for Ineos' decision-makers to answer. He is a talented goalkeeper, but whether he is good enough to start in a team challenging at the top of the Premier League is dubious - and there's enough evidence available to make that conclusion.

There is no doubt Onana has the required personality and character to represent United, but he is judged on the pitch and some supporters want to see more from their No.1 goalkeeper.

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