Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag has defended under-fire goalkeeper Andre Onana,
insisting the Cameroon international is one of the finest in the Premier League.
Onana has been in the limelight on numerous occasions since United paid £47 million for the 27-
year-old to replace David de Gea this summer, and while his form had been improving in recent
weeks, Wednesday’s tie with Galatasaray was a glaring setback as he was at fault for two goals.
While Onana made a mistake for a goal in United’s Champions League loss to Bayern Munich, Ten
Hag pointed to statistics that show Onana is second in the Premier League in saves made, save
percentage, and goals blocked.
“If you analyze it well then you see he is the second-best goalkeeper in the Premier League based on
stats, so his expected defending goals is the second-best in the Premier League. He is doing well.
Also, he knows that in the Champions League, he makes some mistakes but all over you see the first
five months he is doing particularly well,” said the Manchester United coach.
Onana will face another significant test on Saturday evening as United travels to St James Park to
play Newcastle, who are on a five-game winning streak. Ten Hag, on the other hand, does not anticipate Onana suffering from a hangover from Wednesday night.
“You have seen how he is reacting on a bad performance like in Munich. At Burnley (three days later)
he was outstanding. He is a strong character, he is a personality and he will deal with it,” said Ten
Hag.
United said on Friday that left-back Tyrell Malacia, who is yet to play this season due to knee
surgery, is expected to return early next year after undergoing a second operation. Mason Mount
returned to training on Friday, but there is no specific date for his return.
