Paul Scholes fears Manchester United may be forced to stick with Andre Onana – simply because they have bigger problems to solve in the summer transfer window. Onana was at fault for both of Lyon’s goals as United drew 2-2 in the first leg of their Europa League quarter-final on Thursday night.
The United goalkeeper allowed Thiago Almada’s inswinging free-kick into his net to give the French side the lead. The away side hit back when Leny Yoro redirected Manuel Ugarte’s shot past the keeper and appeared to have won it when Joshua Zirkzee headed in Bruno Fernandes’ cross in the 88th minute.
However, the match was to end in disappointment for United as Onana split Georges Mikautadze’s shot and Rayan Cherki pounced on the rebound in the 95th minute. His blunders came after the pre-match build-up was dominated by Nemanja Matic, who claimed Onana was “one of the worst goalkeepers” in United’s history.
United are set for a major overhaul in the summer transfer window, but Onana’s place as the first-choice goalkeeper hasn’t really been questioned. The Cameroon international cost United £43.8million plus £3.4m in add-ons from Inter Milan in July 2023 and is under contract until June 2028.
Scholes took a realistic view when discussing the goalkeeper after the final whistle on TNT Sports. Asked whether United should replace Onana in the summer, Scholes replied: “Yeah, I think it’s something they need to think about. But they need to look at the budget as well. Can you get away with not spending that money on a goalkeeper?
“He hasn’t been quite good enough but it will come down to money and what Amorim has got to spend. We’ve seen this goalkeeper do well at Inter Milan as well. But I don’t think his distribution has been great either, and that’s one of the reasons he was brought in.
“But can you almost get away with not spending another £40m on a goalkeeper? I don’t know. Ruben Amorim has a lot of problems to solve.”
Amorim was steadfast in his backing of Onana. He said: “When one player makes a mistake, all the team makes a mistake so we continue like this.”
HAVE YOUR SAY! Do Manchester United need a new goalkeeper this summer? Comment below.
And asked whether he would take Onana out of the firing line, Amorim added: “No, we continue to do the same thing. We train, watch the games and we choose the best XI for each match.”
United’s second-choice goalkeeper is Altay Bayindir, who was signed for £4.3m from Fenerbahce in September 2023. The Turkey international has made just seven appearances for United, having been stuck behind Onana in the pecking order.
Judging by Amorim’s words, Onana will be in goal when United play Newcastle on Sunday afternoon in the Premier League. But the former Ajax and Inter keeper will now be under an intense spotlight, with his place in the side being openly questioned.
Join our new MAN UTD WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Manchester United content from Mirror Football. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
Sky has slashed the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle in an unbeatable new deal that saves £192 and includes 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.
At Reach and across our entities we and our partners use information collected through cookies and other identifiers from your device to improve experience on our site, analyse how it is used and to show personalised advertising. You can opt out of the sale or sharing of your data, at any time clicking the “Do Not Sell or Share my Data” button at the bottom of the webpage. Please note that your preferences are browser specific. Use of our website and any of our services represents your acceptance of the use of cookies and consent to the practices described in our Privacy Notice and Cookie Notice.