As a big-money Manchester United signing, you are always going to be under the utmost scrutiny. Throw in the fact Andre Onana is a goalkeeper, replacing a stalwart who kept United afloat for so long, and the pressure cooker was turned up to its maximum setting.
High-profile errors in key fixtures earlier this season led United to rally around the under-fire ‘keeper, issuing unwavering support to dispel any doubts that Onana is the rightful heir to David de Gea’s throne.
And it worked. In recent weeks, as United have, by hook or by crook, become the Premier League’s form team. Onana had not put a foot wrong, growing in stature with the ball at his feet, all while making big saves at crucial moments.
But after he single-handedly contrived to make United’s best performance of the season in Galatasaray irrelevant, to leave Erik ten Hag’s side staring down the barrel of a European exit, it is very much back to square one.
The manager who put so much faith in his former Ajax protégé needs to make some tough decisions, for the good of all concerned.
“He’s OK,” Ten Hag said after United’s gripping, slapstick 3-3 draw in Istanbul. “It is not about individuals. Individual errors in football can make a difference and you take responsibility for it, but it is always about the team.”
Blind faith is not going to wash this time. Onana needs taking out of the firing line.
Fortunately for Ten Hag, he has the perfect excuse to shuffle his goalkeeping pack.
i understands Onana, having come out of international retirement, is considering going to the Africa Cup of Nations in January.
Should he choose to do so, he could miss up to seven United matches, thrusting understudy Altay Bayindir into the limelight, despite having not played a single minute since joining.
Before a run of games which could make or break United’s fragile season, the Turkey international could so with some match practice – if only the guy ahead of him was floundering and in need of salvation.
Publicly, Ten Hag can tell the world his plan is to give Bayindir some minutes, should he be needed more regularly in January. Even if we all know the real reason.
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Whatever Ten Hag says, after the final whistle in Istanbul there was a truer reflection of how the other players feel about their beleaguered colleague.
After his costly blunders against Bayern Munich where, just as they did in Copenhagen and Istanbul, United scored three away goals and still didn’t win, Onana cut a disconsolate figure at full time. At the end of those games, however, he did not have to wallow in self-pity for too long – he soon had several team-mates offering a shoulder to cry on.
There were no such actions – infinitely more powerful than any words to the media – in Turkey.
An exhilarating team performance, in such a hostile environment, does not come around too often.
United danced on the hot coals of the Ali Sami Yen inferno, bringing the “hell” themselves on their return to Galatasaray 30 years on from one of the Champions League’s most infamous nights. The visitors were cruising at 2-0 after two superb goals. It could have been more.
What the hosts needed was a goal out of nothing to lift the crowd. Chelsea loanee Hakim Ziyech didn’t even hit a first-half free-kick particularly well – in fact, his attempt arrowed straight down the middle of Onana’s goal, a trajectory the Cameroonian failed to read.
There were several heart-in-mouth moments before the incident that took the match, and their hopes of reaching the knockout stages, out of United’s hands. The cameraman picked it up, as every replay shown in the stadium lingered on Ziyech before he stepped up to take the second free-kick, emphasising his nod to team-mates that he was going for goal.
Again, the strike was not particularly well hit. Again, however, the technique deserted Onana, as he tried to scoop the fizzing effort away with one hand. The results were catastrophic.
United had been cruising at 3-1. Had Onana palmed Ziyech’s second goal away, Galatasaray did not look like they had it in them to revive the match themselves.
Confidence among goalkeepers is a fragile thing – and as his team-mates basked in the vitriol, Onana wilted.
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