Is Andre Onana the Right Goalkeeper for Manchester United

05/07/23 756

As of now, David De Gea is officially not a Manchester United player with the club not renewing his contract just yet.

Andre Onana is rumoured to be the man between the sticks to replace one of United’s best goalkeepers of all time. We look at whether or not the Inter Milan keeper is the right choice for Erik ten Hag’s side.

Not a Better Shot-Stopper Than De Gea

Regardless of the errors and lack of confidence in distribution, De Gea is no doubt a better shot-stopper.

The Spainard has consistently saved United several points season after season and he picked up his second Golden Glove award this Premier League campaign after earning 17 clean sheets.

As a result, De Gea has now also kept the most clean sheets for United, moving him clear of Edwin van der Sar and Peter Schmeichel with a total of 189 for the club.

De Gea has a highlight reel like not many others can boast of. Indeed, he does get caught out with basic errors, but as far as shot-stopping and making incredible saves go, he remains one of the very best around.

This season, Onana kept just eight clean sheets but did also let in just 24 goals in 24 games, but it’s other areas of his game that has brought him to ten Hag’s attention.

A True Ball-Playing Goalkeeper

In today’s game, being a serial shot-stopper is not enough, even if you are of the incredible calibre of De Gea.

The sport has evolved more than ever in the past decade, and goalkeepers are now expected to be able to distribute the ball almost equally as well as a central midfield player.

The likes of Ederson of Manchester City and Alisson of Liverpool in the Premier League consistently take control of the ball and play out passes to different areas of the field to retain possession and start an attack. De Gea, however, does not do this at all well.

Onana showed glimpses of this in the Champions League final and his passing ability from his own box has been integral to Inter’s possession retention this season.

Ultimately, although De Gea may save more shots, Onana would no doubt improve United’s overall ability in keeping the ball, starting attacks and getting the ball into the likes of Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford more frequently.

As shown by the likes of Ederson down the years, this proves to be equally as important as shot-stopping these days.