The best thing about Andre Onana is his brilliant ability to play out from the back. He is excellent with his distribution, something not many keepers are capable of.
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Manchester United supporters have been treated to a couple of exciting early summer signings already in this transfer window. It all started with the acquisition of Mason Mount from Chelsea few weeks back. That was followed by the arrival of world class goalkeeper Andre Onana from Inter Milan. He joins the club on a long-term contract and replaces departed David De Gea as the first choice in between the posts for the upcoming season.
The best thing about Andre Onana is his brilliant ability to play out from the back. He is excellent with his distribution, something not many keepers are capable of. That cannot take anything away from his shot-stopping abilities, as he is quite composed in dealing with shots and crosses. After playing an important role in Inter reaching the Champions League final last season, Onana will now work with Erik ten Hag for a second time. The duo worked together during their Ajax days.
Ten Hag went in depth to explain why the club pushed to get Onana’s signing over the line. “Most important, always for a keeper, is clean sheets and he’s not doing that on his own. Therefore, you need a very good defensive organisation, [it’s] quite clear. But also the capabilities of a keeper is [about] keeping the goal clean. So this is the first criterion of a good goalkeeper,” he told club media.
“But, nowadays, football also demands good playing from the back, out-playing qualities, and that is a quality Andre has. You need both and you need to cover both areas. So yeah, we’re happy, of course. I think with his physical presence and also with his personality, he is so keen on winning. He’s so, so eager to win trophies and he will help the team and he will help the squad to get to higher levels.”
Onana will have a familiar face in the defensive third with centre-back Lisandro Martinez providing cover for him in the backline. The duo had a good partnership during their time at Ajax. “Did he have a good relationship with Martinez at Ajax? Yeah, of course. With the centre-half, it’s very important, that communication. That is always very important,” ten Hag added.
“It’s about the co-operation, the team. The keeper with his back four, the keeper with his whole team. It has to be connected. So you need the social and communication skills to get that on the highest level, on the level with the demand and the standards are very high in the Premier League and especially with Manchester United.”
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