Andre Onana has faced his fair share of criticism from all quarters this season, however the Cameroonian recently showed his charitable side by helping out with the United Foundation.

Onana has had a torrid start to his career in Manchester.

The goalkeeper has conceded 14 goals in the Champions League and 17 in the league. The Old Trafford side have also already racked up ten losses for the season in all competitions. This was brutally seen by the player’s shambolic keeping performance versus Galatasaray when he seemingly gifted Hakim Ziyech two free kick goals.

In fact, The Peoples Person recently reported that no keeper has made more mistakes in the Champions League since 2018, and the club still have at least one more game to play in this year’s edition.

However, if we go back less than a year, the keeper was one of the most highly rated players in the world. After a trophy-laden career in the Netherlands for Ajax, he won the Supercoppa Italiana against rivals AC Milan, and also went on to win the Coppa Italia in the 2022/23 season.

The keeper was also a vital component of the Inter side that pushed Manchester City all the way in the Champions League final, narrowly losing 1-0 to a Rodri goal.

Consequently, the Cameroon international was hand-picked by Erik ten Hag to take over the gloves from the departing David de Gea in the summer. The club paid a huge £43.9m fee to secure his services. So far though, it is safe to say that this has not been seen as money well spent.

Nonetheless, Onana has been kind enough to get involved in the charitable side of the club. According to The Daily Mail, the former Ajax keeper “braved the elements for two hours between 5-7pm on Monday night, surprising local kids when he visited one of the Manchester United Foundation’s community projects, Street Reds”.

Despite being a day off for the players, Onana spent time with 30 children who all live less than a mile from the Old Trafford stadium. The goalkeeper was witnessed encouraging the kids and even gave a special pair of his gloves to one of the children in attendance.

It was reported here yesterday that the Manchester United Foundation has also launched a “warm hub” initiative to give local people a place to go chat and be somewhere warm during the winter months and amid a cost-of-living crisis.

Onana himself has also been heavily involved in charity work during his career. The Cameroonian owns his own organisation called the Andre Onana Foundation. The organisation was created in 2016 and is involved in many projects in Cameroon.

The United number 24 states on his own website that, “I know first-hand what many children in my country are suffering. Inside I feel I must help them to have a better future”.

While Onana may have had somewhat of a nightmarish start to his Manchester United career, and has rightly taken flak for it, the player must also be praised for his charitable work with the club and indeed, for his own foundation.

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Following David de Gea’s departure in the summer after 12 years of service at Old Trafford, Erik ten Hag sanctioned a move for Andre Onana.

The Cameroonian showed positive signs during pre-season but when the campaign started, struggled to replicate the form he showed at Inter Milan during his tenure in Italy.

Onana made several high-profile blunders that dearly cost United, especially in the Champions League.

Before the November international break, the Cameroonian seemed to be turning a corner and earned himself plaudits for what seemed like an incredible turnaround.

However, he committed three howlers during United’s clash against Galatasaray in Istanbul a week ago, which helped the Turkish giants rescue a vital point when it seemed like the Red Devils would run out as convincing winners.

As it stands, Ten Hag’s men are bottom of Group A and will almost certainly need a miracle to advance to the next level of the competition.

There was pressure on the manager to drop Onana heading into the Newcastle match at St James’ Park, but Ten Hag chose to stick by his man and repeatedly defended him in public.

According to Foot Mercato however, Ten Hag harbours doubts about Onana’s long-term suitability as United’s starting goalkeeper, just months after he spent big on the player.

The publication states that due to this, United are keeping an eye on Maignan, whose contract with AC Milan expires in 2026.

The Frenchman has been in negotiations with the Serie A outfit for fresh terms but there has not been a breakthrough so far.

It’s believed that Maignan wants a significant wage increase to reflect his status as one of the world’s best goalkeepers.

However, the Rossoneri are not willing to bow to the shot-stopper’s wishes as they’re in the middle of a financial crisis. The situation has apparently alerted other top teams to the possibility of Maignan becoming suddenly available.

Foot Mercato states, “According to our information, Manchester United (Erik ten Hag really likes his profile and is not convinced by André Onana), Chelsea (who are still very interested as was already the case last summer), Bayern Munich (who is looking for a successor to Manuel Neuer), PSG, his training club, are there and are waiting quietly and carefully following the negotiations between the 28-year-old goalkeeper, whose value is estimated at more than €70 million.”

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The scoreline could have been a lot more considering the Magpies’ domination on the night and the woeful display from Erik ten Hag’s side.

However, not everything went according to plan for Eddie Howe’s side with their No 1 Nick Pope suffering an injury in the second-half which saw him get stretchered off wirth former United loanee Martin Dubravka coming on to replace him.

Now as per The Daily Mail, the England international seems to have suffered a recurrence of a dislocated shoulder injury that he had suffered back when he was at Burnley.

Nick Pope out, DDG in?

Surgery is the most likely course of action and that might mean the goalie misses out for at least four months and Newcastle are likely to dip into the transfer market to bring in a new keeper.

Former United shot-stopper David de Gea has emerged as a shock target. Newcastle could plump for him due to his Premier League experience and because he is still a free agent.

The Spaniard ended a 12-year stay at Old Trafford this past summer after Ten Hag forced the club to rescind their previous contract offer and put on the table a new one with a much reduced wage packet.

The Spaniard declined and left the club and has since struggled to find a new home with plenty of clubs rejecting the chance to bring in the Spanish international.

His shot-stopping was letting United down in his final season but most of all, his inability to play out from the back.

His wage demands have proved too costly for a lot of clubs and Newcastle will also not be able to match his last drawn salary and the goalie will have to agree a pay cut if he is to join the Premier League side.

“Newcastle are considering their options, including a possible move for free agent David de Gea, as they await the results of scans on Nick Pope’s shoulder injury.

“Mail Sport understands De Gea is one potential option Newcastle have looked at. He left Manchester United in the summer after 12 years at Old Trafford but has yet to join a new club.

DDG will have to lower wage demands

“He would have obvious appeal given his pedigree, immediate availability and the fact he would not require a transfer fee.

“Though he was on £375,000-per-week during his final contract at Manchester United and would have to accept lower to fit in with their wage structure if Newcastle were to make a firm move for him.”

United brought in Andre Onana as the 33-year-old’s replacement thinking his ability with his feet would revolutionise United’s style of play.

It has been anything but a smooth start to life as the new United No 1 for the Cameroonian, as he has severely struggled in his shot-stopping, making quite a few high-profile errors so far.

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Spanish number one, Unai Simon, has reportedly rejected Manchester United’s advances to sign the player, in favour of staying in the Basque country.

According to fichajes.net, the 26-year-old keeper has rejected three teams to stay in Bilbao, and one of those sides was Manchester United.

The Peoples Person reported in the past that Simon was a potential option to replace David de Gea before the club eventually decided to bring in Andre Onana in the summer market.

The Basque-born keeper has played 15 games this season for Athletic Bilbao, conceding 18 goals in the process. Simon has also represented his national side 38 times since taking over the gloves in late 2020. (Stats via transfermarkt.com)

Fichajes claim that the shot-stopper rejected interest from United, Bayern Munich and Saudi Arabian teams in favour of staying loyal to Los Leones.

The report states that despite having a contract to 2025, the Basque club are desperate to try and tie down the man, who has played 173 times for the club, to a new long-term deal.

It says that the goalkeeper is a “fundamental” part of the team and that Simon has a “deep-rooted desire” to stay and fight for “the club of his heart”, despite the “tempting” offers he has received in the past.

Due to such positive circumstances, it is expected that the Spanish number one will agree to a new deal in the not-too-distant future, and no complications are expected in the process.

It is little wonder the Basque side is so keen to tie him down as Simon has been in fine form with an average Sofascore rating of 7.2 this season.

In October, the keeper was awarded with a 7.9 rating in a 1-0 loss against Barcelona. The keeper was credited with six saves with four coming inside the box.

With Manchester United’s new summer signing, Andre Onana, being under such heavy fire from the press after a series of high-profile mistakes, most recently against Galatasaray, it is normal that keepers who have been linked to the club in the past will be compared.

However, it is interesting to note that the Cameroonian keeper actually has a slightly higher season rating on Sofascore of 7.26 than Simon and he was recently credited with a mammoth 8.7 score and made five saves inside the box against Everton the weekend before last.

Onana’s major problem has been consistency and more specifically, making a series of high-profile blunders in the Champions League, as he has struggled to adapt to the high-pressure life of being United’s number one.

Whilst Erik ten Hag has recently claimed that the Cameroonian is “not undroppable”, it is unlikely Simon or any other keeper will take his spot just yet, as for better or worse, the Dutch coach seems desperate to make his expensive summer acquisition find some consistent form.

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The manager said:

“I think so [that his side are playing as the fans would want], if you see the goals we’ve scored recently. In Copenhagen, at Everton, on Wednesday, in Istanbul, we scored some very good collective goals The fact of having a good plan, of giving creativity to the players in the positions where they perform best, allowed us to score some very good goals:”

United’s last match was a disappointing 3-3 draw with Galatasaray in Istanbul on Wednesday. Twice in the game United squandered a two-goal lead, mostly due to poor goalkeeping by Andre Onana.

When questioned at the press conference whether Onana would be dropped for the last Champions League match, he said “No”.

“It’s obvious, he has the potential.”

The reporter said it might help Onana to be taken out of the team, to which Ten Hag replied “No, it won’t happen”.

“I have trust in Tom [Heaton] and Altay [Bayindir], clear. But Andre, you see it once again, [he is] after Alisson in [terms of] preventing the most expected goals from the whole league.

“He was in Champions League, so much experience, with Ajax, with Inter Milan last year he was in the Champions League after Neuer, Courtois, he was the best keeper.”

“He is a great keeper and he has the potential so we have to work on him, [so] that he is doing that consistently and we will work with him. The manager, the coaches, and also the players they support him.”

Asked if he is undroppable, Ten Hag insisted “of course not, no-one is undroppable. That is also clear. We believe and we have a strong belief that he will help us win trophies.”

Asked if the Cameroonian would leave for the Africa Cup of Nations in January, the manager replied:

“So when they call him, he has to go. But we are in talks”.

Earlier this year Ten Hag made comments about tomorrow’s opponents, Newcastle, being “annoying” with their time-wasting and he was asked to elaborate on that ahead of tomorrow’s match.

“I didn’t say that. The time-wasting: I made that point, clear. The term ‘annoying’ was positive for them,” he said.

“It is a really difficult team to play, so I meant it in a very positive way. I said it out of respect for how they are doing. They are physical, they have a very good transition and very good organisation in the pressing.

“They are doing a great job there and I like to play against them.”

Ten Hag was then asked about Marcus Rashford’s future given that Alejandro Garnacho has nailed down the left wing role.

“Didn’t you see our games?” he replied. “They were both in the team against Copenhagen and Everton.”

“Rashy can play from the right and he likes to play from the right. But he can also play through in the middle, and also from the left, so he is really motivated,” he replied.

Ten Hag also confirmed that “Donny has to play” when asked if Van de Beek would be allowed to leave the club in summer. More on that story on The Peoples Person tomorrow.

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The main culprit on the night was Andre Onana, with the goalkeeper culpable for all three goals conceded by United in Istanbul.

After a string of unimpressive displays at the start of his United career in the Premier League, the former Ajax star seemed to be rediscovering his touch before disaster struck at RAMS Park.

Onana’s struggles

He was also at fault against Bayern Munich and the Turkish giants during the reverse fixture and his mistakes in Europe have potentially cost the Red Devils a place in the knockout round.

The Cameroonian is aware that pressure is building on manager Erik ten Hag regarding his continued selection in the first XI. For now, the United No 1 retains the trust of the manager.

The Dutchman has also hinted at game-time for backup keeper Altay Bayindir and with Onana set to participate in the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations, it offers a route into the first team to the Turkish international.

Coaches at Carrington have been impressed with the former Fenerbahce star and Onana is aware that Bayindir has the potential to usurp him from his spot for the long term.

As reported by The Peoples Person, the 27-year-old is even contemplating not going for the AFCON in January which will see him miss up to six games.

Temporary FIFA ban

However, as noted by The Sun, a little-known FIFA rule states that if a player rejects the chance to represent his national team, he will be banned from representing his club for the duration of the international tournament.

The FIFA rule reads: “A player who has been called up by his association for one of its representative teams is, unless otherwise agreed by the relevant association, not entitled to play for the club with which he is registered during the period for which he has been released or should have been released pursuant to the provisions of this annex, plus an additional period of five days.”

With the AFCON running from January 13 to February 11, Onana’s hopes of saving his club career could be ruined either way.

If his form does not improve in the interim period, he could lose his spot much earlier than January. December is full of crucial fixtures and the Cameroon international will need to prove his critics wrong.

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The goalkeeper has endured a tough few days following his abysmal performance against Galatasaray in the Champions League on Wednesday evening.

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to conclude Onana single-handedly (albeit, with both hands on occasion) cost his side all three points in the crucial fixture.

A win would have left United second in the group with a strong chance of qualification to the knockout stages.

Instead, a draw leaves them bottom, needing to beat Bayern Munich in their final game while also needing Galatasaray and FC Copenhagen to finish level.

Any other variation of results and United will be eliminated from Europe’s premier tournament.

These mistakes were not Onana’s first in the competition, however.

In the reverse home match against Galatasaray, the Cameroonian international made a dreadful pass out from the back which the opposition easily intercepted and bore down on goal.

In response, Casemiro desperately slid in to try and rectify his team-mate’s mistake. The result was a red card and a penalty. United were winning 2-1 at the time; they finished 3-2 losers.

Similarly, in the first match away to Bayern Munich, while fielding a severely weakened side due to injury, United started the game brightly, matching the German giants for the first twenty minutes.

This equality ended after a speculative shot by Leroy Sane was calamitously thrown into his own net by Onana. United would ultimately lose the match 4-3.

The criticism and pressure on the goalkeeper has been acute this week. Which has clouded what had been a series of excellent performances domestically by Onana.

United have won five of their last six league games, winning all three in November. A combination of favourable fixtures and the international break have undoubtedly played a significant role in this statistic, but Onana has consistently played well in the past two months since the Galatasaray howler at Old Trafford.

While Erik ten Hag’s side have suffered some embarrassing losses – 3-0 to City, 3-0 to Newcastle and 4-3 to FC Copenhagen – these have all stemmed from errors elsewhere on the pitch.

In November specifically, Onana did not concede a goal in the league. He leads the league in joint-first place for clean sheets while his underlying stats have been equally impressive – first place for save percentage and second for post-shot expected goals, goals prevented and overall saves.

Andre Onana’s Premier League stats so far:

13 games
78.8% save rate [=]
51 saves []
5 clean sheets [=]
+3.4 post-shot expected goals [=]
2.67 goals prevented []

Underrated. pic.twitter.com/zM9S0yfUKB

— Statman Dave (@StatmanDave) November 27, 2023

In fact, these performances were enough to warrant inclusion by WhoScored for their Premier League Team of the Month, alongside Diogo Dalot, Harry Maguire and Bruno Fernandes.

Premier League Team of the Month pic.twitter.com/03ttsfIMae

— WhoScored.com (@WhoScored) November 30, 2023

While Wednesday’s performance against Galatasaray was undeniably poor and questions can justifiably be raised about Onana, there is enough evidence over the past month to offer glimmers of positivity he will able to turn his Old Trafford career around.

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The three-time winners will have to depend on other results going their way after they squandered a two-goal lead in Istanbul on Wednesday.

Goalkeeper Andre Onana was culpable for all three goals conceded on the night and his errors have potentially cost United a spot in the Round of 16.

Onana’s woes

Pressure is being heaped on manager Erik ten Hag to drop the underperforming Cameroonian and opt for backup keeper Altay Bayindir instead.

The Turk has impressed the manager and the coaches at Carrington. Brought in for his superior distribution skills, the former Inter Milan star is fluffing his lines when it comes to his main job — protecting the goal.

His immediate future at club level has been further complicated by his supposed participation in the Africa Cup of Nations early next year.

The tournament will run from January 13 to February 11 and could see Onana missing up to six games.

And the United No 1 is aware that representing his country could mean he forsakes his spot as a starter with the Turkish backup ready to usurp him.

The Sun have now claimed that the 27-year-old shot-stopper is contemplating pulling out to protect his spot in the United team.

AFCON confusion

“Goalkeeper Andre Onana could pull out of the African Cup of Nations to protect his Manchester United number one spot.

“With Turkish goalkeeper Altay Bayindir waiting in the wings having signed for the United in the summer, Onana fears he might lose his place long term.”

For now, Ten Hag trusts his former Ajax protege but if his form continues to waver, he might lose his No 1 spot to the former Fenerbahce star before AFCON stars.

Onana has a lot to ponder in the coming weeks and will need to show he is capable of riding out the storm by proving himself out on the pitch.

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The visiting side were let down by goalkeeper Andre Onana, who was culpable for all three goals conceded on the night in what was yet another horror show in Europe.

The Cameroonian was at fault during the opening game against Bayern Munich and now at RAMS Park. He has also been culpable for more than a few soft goals in the Premier League.

Onana’s horror show

After a penalty save against Copenhagen, the 27-year-old was supposed to be rediscovering his form before disaster struck in Istanbul.

Once again, Erik ten Hag will be questioned for bringing in the shot-stopper from Inter Milan in David de Gea’s stead and calls will also grow for the keeper to be dropped.

There have been positive reports emanating from Carrington citing backup keeper Altay Bayindir’s pedigree and how the manager should trust the Turk for a few games.

But ESPN have now cited sources saying Ten Hag is not going to drop Onana as he trusts him and considers that the pros of having the Cameroon international in goal far outweigh the cons.

The Dutch boss is a big fan of the United No 1’s distribution ability with his feet and considers it crucial for his team’s style of play.

Onana was also credited for his great pass which ultimately led to Alejandro Garnacho’s opener against Galatasaray.

“Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag will continue to back André Onana as his first-choice goalkeeper and still believes it was the right decision to bring him in after the departure of David De Gea last summer, a source has told ESPN.

Onana retains ETH’s trust

“According to a source, Ten Hag believes the £43 million summer signing from Inter Milan will turn things around.

“A source has told ESPN that Ten Hag is likely to keep faith with Onana for the Premier League trip to Newcastle on Saturday, unless the stopper makes it clear he wants to be taken out of the firing line.”

Bayindir will have to bide his time for now and fans will hope Onana will continue his Premier League form on Saturday when United take on Newcastle United.

The Red Devils have not conceded for over 300 minutes now and Onana has played a major role in that. Hopefully, he does not let the memories of Wednesday linger too long in his mind.

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Manchester United’s hopes of qualifying for the knockout phase of the Champions League are left hanging by a thread after last night’s pulsating draw with Galatasaray.

Erik ten Hag’s men knew they needed to win in Turkey to keep their destiny in their own hands going into the final matchday of the group stage.

However, United inexplicably twice threw away a two goal lead with goalkeeper Andre Onana having another night to forget in Europe.

The Cameroon international was at fault for Galatasaray’s first two goals of the night, allowing a pair of Hakim Ziyech free kicks to keep the home side in the game.

In particular Ziyech’s second, a tame looking strike that was spooned into his own net by Onana when it looked easier to save, halved United’s lead going into a key stage of the game.

As reported by The Daily Mail, Onana has come in for heavy criticism after last night with former United winger Lee Sharpe weighing in on the 27-year-old’s struggles.

Sharpe backed the former Inter man to come good but says he needs to improve on the fundamentals of goalkeeping to ensure he gets back to his best form as quickly as possible.

“As much as he is a character and good on the ball, he’s made some silly mistakes as far as catching and keeping the ball goes,” Sharpe said.

I still think he’ll come good, but he needs to learn fast about the basics of goalkeeping.”

Additionally, the former England man believes United were too hasty in letting David de Gea leave the club after his contract expired in the summer.

“Letting De Gea go was a little bit premature. I know it’s easy to look back in hindsight now but the standard De Gea had set over the last 10 years at the club, he’d been incredible.

He was winning Players’ Player of the Year, Supporters’ Player of the Year, God knows how many times. To get rid of him the way they did was a bit of a surprise,” admitted Sharpe.

Onana looked to have turned a corner after a turbulent start to life as United’s new number one but last night’s horror show will have no doubt rocked his confidence.

Ten Hag will need his ‘keeper to dust himself down quickly for the trip to top four rivals Newcastle on Saturday night.

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