Manchester United-bound Andre Onana’s move to Old Trafford is becoming more and more imminent, according to reliable journalist Laurie Whitwell of The Athletic.
Andre Onana to Manchester United Now on the Verge of Completion
Modern Goalkeeper Andre Onana Finally Set to Join
Over the last few years, there has been a major shift in the role that goalkeepers are expected to play, and former United number one David de Gea was seemingly unable to make that required adjustment to his game.
While modern goalkeepers were becoming increasingly comfortable using their feet and acting more as sweeper keepers, De Gea struggled to adapt to this, with his distribution remaining poor and leaving his own penalty box being a rare occurrence.
While the Spaniard continued to demonstrate the major skill that had made him a fan favourite at Old Trafford for years – his shot-stopping ability – this, in the end, was not enough for Erik ten Hag.
Chris Wheeler reports that the Dutch boss was behind United’s U-turn on De Gea’s contract, with his reservations about the goalkeeper being the reason why an offer of a new deal, which had been agreed upon in principle, was withdrawn.
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Now, though, the Red Devils are set to complete the acquisition of Andre Onana, who will immediately assume the role of first-choice goalkeeper at the Theatre of Dreams.
Whitwell reports that the Cameroon international has already signed his contract in Manchester and is now “booked on a flight” to join the rest of the squad in New York for their pre-season tour.
All that remains for the deal to be completed is for the two clubs to sign the final paperwork, with an announcement expected “in the next 24 hours”.
Main image credit: Brent Flanders, CC BY-NC-ND-2.0.
