Onana enjoyed a successful spell with Erik ten Hag at Ajax, winning multiple Eredivisie titles and reaching the Champions League semi-finals. However, his time at Manchester United has been far from fulfilling. Last season, the team was eliminated from the Champions League early and finished eighth in the Premier League, their lowest position since 1989-90. Although they salvaged the season with an FA Cup victory, the 2024-25 campaign started disastrously, leading to Ten Hag’s dismissal following a 2-1 loss to West Ham last month.
“When I heard he was leaving, I felt bad,” Onana said at a press conference. “It’s not always easy to understand why a manager leaves. I worried about him because we have a very good relationship. Why didn’t things work here? Simply put, we didn’t win enough games. At this level, that’s the reality, and sometimes you pay the price. We worked hard, did everything we could, but it just didn’t work out.”
Since Ten Hag’s departure, Ruud van Nistelrooy has stepped in as interim coach, though Ruben Amorim will take over as the permanent manager next week. Amorim, who recently led Sporting CP to a stunning 4-1 victory over Manchester City, is known for using a 3-4-3 formation. Onana believes the team is capable of adapting to his tactics. “I did watch it,” Onana said. “It’s a different system, but we are pragmatic, and everyone here is capable of adjusting. It won’t be an issue for us.”
Looking ahead, United will seek their first Europa League win of the season against Greek side PAOK on Thursday. So far, they’ve drawn all three of their matches against Twente, Porto, and Fenerbahce. When asked about United’s recent struggles in European competitions, Van Nistelrooy, the interim coach, responded, “It’s a big question for me to answer. The reason I came to the club is to help build successful teams. We’ve had big European moments—Ole’s Europa League final and Mourinho’s Europa League win. Manchester United is always meant to compete in Europe.”
André Onana
André Onana
CameroonThis season he played in total 4 times for 360 minutes for Europa League.
He made 14 saves and conceded 5 goals. He received no yellow cards and no red cards.
His team is currently 13th in Europa League. In the last match Manchester United won 2-0 against PAOK. The next match in Europa League will be against Leicester City.
Manchester United performance and stats
Manchester United is currently 15th in the Europa League with 6 points.
In the last 4 games, it has won once and drew 3 times. In its last match, Manchester United won 2-0 against PAOK.
It has a positive goal difference after scoring 7 goals and conceding 5.
