Since moving to Man Utd during the summer transfer window, Andre Onana has drawn a lot of criticism.
A handful of Manchester United supporters are showing signs of a concerning new trend. They say that David de Gea could have prevented every goal that is given up.
When United overhauled their goalkeeping unit in the summer by bringing in Andre Onana and Altay Bayindir while also selling De Gea and Dean Henderson, they were always at risk of revisionism. De Gea had been in decline for years, but his legendary position at the club allowed him to maintain a cult following that ignored his many flaws and concentrated on his unquestionable, elite shot-saving skills.
There is a school of thinking that holds that to be the only factor in goalkeeping. They are doing their job if they are able to keep the ball out of the goal. The finest teams in the world today all have more contemporary goalkeepers who are more at ease using their feet than their hands, which serves as evidence that it is an obsolete mindset.
De Gea was deservedly considered as one of the greatest when it came to making jaw-dropping saves, but in recent years the quantity has decreased and many of them have turned into acts of atonement following his first error. He was a firefighter, battling his own arsonist tendencies.
It is clear that Onana hasn’t had the finest start to life at United so far, but given how much more of a problem he has become, De Gea revisionism is not appropriate. In comparison, Onana has given up ten goals from the 30 shots he has faced, compared to the Spaniard’s seven goals from nine shots on target at the same period of last season.
Furthermore, it’s important to note that none of Onana’s errors have been as egregious as De Gea’s were during Brentford’s humiliating 4-0 loss to him last season. The Cameroonian isn’t helped by the fact that this season, one of the few instances in which, his ability to make saves hasn’t been exactly up to par,
De Gea is superior to him, but it has already become apparent how composed he is when in control.
Onana has started to alter United’s style of play, but it won’t be accomplished overnight and it is clear that they need more time to adjust before being objectively assessed. This is another reason why it has taken him some time to adjust to his new surroundings; it should also be much more obvious when he is playing against a solid defense.
Onana’s ability to block shots pleased United when they acquired him, but his distributing skills and composure with the ball in his hands were the primary factors in their decision. In a perfect scenario, he wouldn’t have had much to do in the first few games of the season because United was meant to control play. However, because of the team’s poor defence, he has been called upon much more frequently than anticipated.
Onana isn’t United’s primary defensive issue right now, but if his errors start to account for all of the team’s lost points, that may change quickly. The considerable criticism of the new goalie is unjustified until that happens, especially since he is being compared to
with another person from previous season who was much worse.
Ten Hag made his ruthless decision, and he must now follow through on it. Onana is a keeper, whether certain supporters like it or not.
