Andre Onana was told he wasn't the right man to replace David de Gea throughout last season after arriving at Manchester United from Inter Milan. The Cameroonian goalkeeper had huge gloves to fill as the heir to one of the club's most adored and longest-serving players in history.
Glaring mistakes, indecisiveness, and questionable positioning placed huge doubts on Onana being the right man for the job. For all his scrutinized recruitment faults, Erik ten Hag was eager to reunite with his former Ajax shot-stopper and United agreed to pay Inter Milan £42.7 million for his services.
Onana, 28, has stepped up this season, producing impressive performances in a team that are struggling for form. This has led to him achieving a stat that makes him arguably the best goalkeeper in the Premier League at present.
Andre Onana is statisitcally overperforming in his sophomore Manchester United season
Onana has conceded 2.8 goals fewer than expected based on xG in the Premier League this season. This is the English top-flight's biggest overperformance for a goalkeeper and puts him only behind Torino's Serbian shot-stopper Vanja Milinkovic-Savic across the whole of Europe, per Statman Dave.
It's been a sensational renaissance for Onana who was perhaps feeling the pressure following his arrival at Old Trafford. Manchester United's poor displays this season have resulted in them conceding eight goals in as many games but it would have been a hell of a lot worse without the Cameroon international.
Onana has kept three clean sheets in those games, and he's making 3.0 saves per game, 18 to his name in the Premier League. He's also proven reliable at saving penalties after his heroics against FC Copenhagen in the Champions League last season. He denied Cameron Archer from the spot in the Red Devils' 3-0 win over Southampton, their best performance this term.
A. Onana 🇨🇲 pic.twitter.com/w3HV1NXhSK
— Manchester United (@ManUtd_Es) September 22, 2024
The former Ajax keeper's best display perhaps came in a 0-0 draw against Crystal Palace where he made four saves. He produced maybe the best double save of the season when he kept Eddie Nektiah and Ismaila Sarr at bay with quick reflexes.
"I turned my situation around" - Onana on his upturn in form
Onana spoke after the draw against Palace about his recent turnaround at United and acknowledged his difficult start to his Red Devils career. He said (via Yahoo! Sports):
"I had difficulty in the first six months at the club and after I turned around my situation. So it’s just believing in yourself and following the flow now everything is going positive."Andre Onana
There can be no disputing that Onana is now proving to be one of the best acquisitions of Ten Hag's reign. He's vital for the Red Devils and is finally getting his flowers after a frustrating start.
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