Andre Onana[1] was mobbed by fans as he arrived in Turkey to complete a season-long loan move to Trabzonspor.
The Cameroonian keeper, 29, joins the Turkish Super Lig club on the back of a dismal two years at Manchester United[2] after signing in a £47million deal from Inter Milan[3].
Onana travelled to the north-eastern city of Trabzon on Thursday after playing for his national side in World Cup Qualifiers against Cape Verde and Eswatini this week.
He joins Trabzonspor, currently second in the Turkish league, in a loan deal which will incredibly see him double his salary due to a huge signing-on fee and bonuses.
United will not receive a loan fee and there is no option for the Turkish club to sign Onana permanently when it runs out on June 30.
He was met by a huge crowd of Trabzonspor fans as he arrived at Trabzon Airport this afternoon, who greeted their new addition with a lively chant outside.
Andre Onana was mobbed by Trabzonspor fans as he arrived in Turkey on Thursday afternoon
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The Cameroonian goalkeeper joins the Turkish Super Lig club on a one-year loan deal
Onana seemed in great spirits with his new supporters after putting an end to his nightmare two-year spell at Old Trafford.
He joined the club much to the excitement of Red Devils fans in the summer of 2023 after playing a crucial part in Inter Milan’s run to the Champions League final a season earlier.
However enthusiasm amongst United supporters at his signing soon dwindled as Onana got his Premier League career off to a more than shaky start under Erik ten Hag.
He went on to make a plethora of mistakes under both Ten Hag and Amorim, with arguably his worst performance in a United shirt coming in what now looks to be his last game for the club in the disaster at Grimsby Town last month.
It’s thought tensions had been rising between Onana and Amorim as early as the beginning of pre-season when the ‘keeper returned demanding a new contract, which was far from forthcoming.
Onana later reported a hamstring injury which kept him out of pre-season and left him down the pecking order behind United’s Turkish shot-stopper Altay Bayindir.
The performance at Grimsby ultimately came as something of a nail in the metaphorical coffin of Onana’s United career, leaving the 29-year-old despondent in his final weeks at the club as chiefs scrambled to find a replacement
His successor ultimately came in the form of young Belgian goalkeeper Senne Lammens, who signed for a fee of £18.2m on Deadline Day, despite United making a late bid to sign Emi Martinez from Aston Villa.
Onana’s performance at Grimsby Town last month came as the nail in the metaphorical coffin of his Old Trafford career
United chiefs scrambled to find a replacement ‘keeper before the window shut, which eventually came in the form of Senne Lammens
It remains to be seen whether Ruben Amorim will throw his new addition in from the start of stick with Altay Bayindir on Sunday
Ruben Amorim and United fans alike will no-doubt be hoping Lammens hits the ground running amid Bayindir’s struggles so far this season.
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The Turkish international has looked far from assured since being promoted to No 1 and was at fault for goals against both Arsenal and Burnley.
It remains to be seen whether Amorim will throw Lammens into the deep end for the Manchester derby on Sunday or whether he’ll stick with Bayindir.
Pep Guardiola meanwhile has a new goalkeeper of his own after Gianluigi Donnarumma signed for the Cityzens in a £26million deal earlier this month.
City do however go into the fixture without a number of important players including Omar Marmoush, Rayan Cherki and Phil Foden.
Ruben Amorim is yet to clarify whether Matheus Cunha and Mason Mount, both of whom went off injured in the 3-2 win against Burnley, have recovered from their knocks in time for the trip to the Etihad.
The United boss holds his pre-match press conference on Friday.
References
- ^ Andre Onana (www.dailymail.co.uk)
- ^ Manchester United (www.dailymail.co.uk)
- ^ Inter Milan (www.dailymail.co.uk)