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Galatasaray return
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On Saturday night, André Onana will return to the scene of the darkest night in his troubled Manchester United career. Amidst the renowned atmosphere of Galatasaray’s hostile home support, Onana made two costly mistakes in a 3-3 draw, which effectively ended United’s hopes of qualifying for the knockout stages of the Champions League. Galatasaray fans unfurled a banner stating ‘your nightmare is back again’ - and that encapsulated the harrowing evening for Onana, which was the final nail in his coffin amongst many United fans.
The Cameroon international arrived at Old Trafford with a glowing reputation after excelling in Europe with Inter Milan and his acquisition was viewed as a major coup for United. Onana’s Old Trafford career, however, was recapitulated by high-profile mistakes and his exit this summer to Trabzonspor was inevitable. The aim of moving to Türkiye? Simple. To revive his reputation and Onana will walk out on RAMS Park this weekend looking to banish the memories of that fateful night.
André Onana: The view from Türkiye
An injury disrupted Onana’s pre-season preparations and the end of his United career was evident when Ruben Amorim preferred Altay Bayındır as his first-choice goalkeeper to start the campaign. United were pursuing a deal for Senne Lammens - who has settled brilliantly at Old Trafford - to become their new number one and Onana departed for Trabzonspor on loan. The 29-year-old entered a difficult situation as Trabzonspor fans were furious after the club sold their star goalkeeper Uğurcan Çakır to Galatasaray.
Onana was thrown straight into the fire with a debut against Fenerbahce just days after his arrival and he was excellent, despite Trabzonspor losing. The Cameroonian has gone from strength to strength since then and he’s been outstanding in the Süper Lig, in stark contrast to his form at United. Onana has one of the best save percentages in Europe (77.8%) and he’s adored by his new fanbase - labelled ‘the wall’ by Trabzonspor’s social media account. He has kept two clean sheets and Trabzonspor are riding high in second place in the league, on a run of four consecutive wins ahead of their clash with leaders Galatasaray.
To gain some insight on the perception of Onana in Türkiye, we spoke to Sinan Yener, Transfermarkt’s Süper Lig expert. “With his experience and confidence, Onana gives trust to both his teammates and the fans,” said Yener. “During his time at Manchester United, he sometimes made mistakes, but in Trabzonspor, he doesn’t make those mistakes anymore. Instead, he shows great focus, leads the team, and has quickly become a fan favourite.
Yener continued: “Trabzonspor is currently in second place in the Turkish Süper Lig, and Onana has played a big part in this success. He almost never makes mistakes and helps the team stay strong. This weekend, all eyes will once again be on Onana when Trabzonspor faces Galatasaray. The Cameroonian goalkeeper previously played against Galatasaray in the Champions League with Manchester United and made two mistakes in that game. This time, he will step onto the same field wearing the Trabzonspor shirt - and fans believe he won’t repeat those mistakes.”
André Onana: What does the future hold?
Onana’s excellence in Türkiye is only positive for Man United as they aim to sell him permanently next summer. When his loan deal expires at the end of the season, Onana will still have two years left on his contract at United and he is on a substantial wage. His contract demands will prove prohibitive to certain suitors and United will want to recoup a sizable fee for the goalkeeper with his current market value at €20m. Despite the desire of Trabzonspor, it appears incredibly unlikely that he will remain at the club next season, as Yener explains.
He said: “The club wants to keep him permanently, but that depends on how much money Manchester United will ask for him. Many Trabzonspor fans want the club to buy Onana, but it is not clear if that will happen. The club’s management also wants to keep him next season, but their budget might not be enough. Trabzonspor has never paid more than €7m for a player. For example, they did not want to pay €8m for Paul Onuachu and finally bought him for about €6m. A similar situation could happen with Onana. If Manchester United asks for €15-20mt, it will be very difficult for Trabzonspor to afford it.” It's only the start for Onana at Trabzonspor but it's been extremely positive and he could further redeem himself at a venue that holds bad memories on Saturday night.
