1 week Ago By Alex Turk
Andre Onana has refused to bow down to pressure applied by Manchester United fans over his tendency to slow games down. The Old Trafford crowd often becomes audibly frustrated at Onana for holding onto the ball for too long when there is an opportunity to break. He bore the brunt of more moaning and shouting for his measured approach in Sunday's derby draw against Manchester City .
Supporters craved more action in the 0-0 stalemate, yet both teams cancelled each other out with stale attacking performances. But despite the backlash, Onana insists he will continue to make decisions based on what he believes is best for Ruben Amorim 's side. "To be honest, it doesn't affect me because the decision I make is to help the team," the 29-year-old goalkeeper said.
"Sometimes I will make the right decision; sometimes I will make the wrong decision. "When I feel my players need to rest, I have to take my time; when I feel we need to speed up the game, I will do it. "But sometimes, especially in the second half with an opponent that has a lot of control, they have more possession than us, I have to let my guys breathe.
"They need me to do that. If the team needs to speed up the game, I will do it. I try to make the best decision for the team.
" Onana kept his ninth Premier League clean sheet of the season against City, with only Matz Sels and David Raya totalling more. Yet, he has yet to convince much of the United fanbase due to blunders that plagued his debut season leaking into the current campaign. The Cameroon international has produced some breath-taking saves since replacing David de Gea in a £47million deal in 2023.
But he still carries a risk of suffering a lapse in his shot-stopping ability, and his relaxed nature on the ball is seldom received well by fans. United's season rests on their Europa League campaign, with a quarter-final first leg in Lyon on the agenda this Thursday. Onana has spoken a big game ahead of the trip to France, expressing confidence that the Red Devils can book their place in the semi-finals.
He said: "It's a very good team. We know some of them, but I don't think we have to focus on them. "It's more about us, what we're going to do; I think we are better than them; we just have to go there and show who we are.
"If we go there with a winning mentality and we are focused, stay compact and together, and we follow the game plan, we will be winning the game. "Of course, It's not going to be easy, but I think we are way better than them.".
