They say you have to be mad to be a goalkeeper. And ‘they’ would be absolutely right. It’s a thankless task barely worth the hassle.
You make one mistake and it lives with you forever. There’s significantly less margin for error than any other positions. You are all that stands between your team succeeding and the edge of oblivion.
When you’re living under the Manchester United microscope of introspections, those stakes are even higher. That was the life of David de Gea 12 years ago and it’s the life of Andre Onana now.
But who had it worse? Why were their starts so bad? Is there any hope for Onana or should he just pack it in now? Should he start travelling the world as a motivational speaker or start a YouTube channel?
90min tries to come up with some answers.
De Gea’s debut for the Red Devils came against bitter rivals Manchester City in the 2011 Community Shield, which United came from behind to win 3-2.
But the Spaniard’s start hardly inspired confidence. City opened the scoring when David Silva sent in a teasing cross from a free-kick, and De Gea’s hesitance to come and collect the ball allowed Joleon Lescott to head his side in front. Roberto Mancini’s side doubled their lead when Edin Dzeko’s 25-yard strike squirmed under De Gea.
It was a similar story a week later when he allowed a speculative effort from Shane Long to wriggle under him and find the net in an eventual 2-1 victory at West Bromwich Albion.
After keeping a clean sheet in a 3-0 triumph against Tottenham Hotspur, De Gea’s first heroic moment in a United shirt came when he saved a Robin van Persie penalty in their famous 8-2 thrashing of Arsenal, though he allowed Theo Walcott to get on the scoresheet with a shot between his legs and then failed to stand tall when the Dutchman arrived at the back-post for the Gunners’ second.
De Gea put in fine performances in 5-0 and 3-1 victories against Bolton Wanderers and Chelsea respectively, but backup goalkeeper Anders Lindegaard was given the nod for their Champions League opener at Benfica, with the Dane hailed for his performance at the Estadio Da Luz. Nevertheless, Sir Alex Ferguson insisted that this was a pre-arranged agreement and not a dropping of De Gea.
A Champions League debut would come a fortnight later at home to Basel in a thrilling 3-3 draw, though De Gea was hardly to blame for such a scoreline and if anything did well to ensure poor defending didn’t cost United a point.
Despite a strong showing in their 1-1 draw at Stoke City though, Ferguson took De Gea out of the starting lineup for the visit of Norwich City for ‘footballing reasons’ (as opposed to the doughnut-stealing controversy he was embroiled in around that time).
Then came two differing tales in derbies. De Gea played well in a 1-1 stalemate away at Liverpool, but United were infamously turned over 6-1 by City at Old Trafford. Conceding six goals isn’t a great look, but there’s not a lot he could have done for many of those apart from maybe coming for a couple of wicked crosses or closing his legs again.
In De Gea’s 11th game for United – the limit we’re setting based on the games played by Onana so far – he kept a clean sheet during a 1-0 conquering of Everton.
A mixed bag for De Gea, though probably nowhere near as bad as remembered. His lack of presence was a problem, but he was only 20 at the time and was clearly a proven shot-stopper.
Goalkeepers aren’t footballers. They just aren’t. Their main function is to use their hands, which is illegal for everyone else. So fairs to Onana for trying to get in on the action. But at the same time, know your place, pal.
Knives were out for the Cameroonian even in pre-season and before his official debut. It was quickly spotted during a tour in the United States that Onana was eager to play as high up the pitch as possible, acting as another outfielder. This came back to bite him when he was lobbed from the halfway line in a friendly against Lens back at Old Trafford.
He kept a clean sheet on his official debut against Wolverhampton Wanderers, but the 1-0 win was mired in controversy when the visitors were denied a stoppage-time penalty. Onana had completely clattered striker Sasa Kalajdzic (who, for the record, is 6’7) when trying and failing to claim a cross, and Wolves were somehow not awarded the spot-kick.
A 2-0 loss at Tottenham followed but blame could hardly be laid at Onana’s door. Same can’t be said for twice making himself smaller for the quick-fire double scored by Nottingham Forest a week later.
Back to north London for a late 3-1 defeat at Arsenal, though again this was not Onana’s fault. The 3-1 humiliation by Brighton & Hove Albion, okay, maybe he could stretched his arms a little farther. The 4-3 loss at Bayern Munich, you have to keep out that slow-moving Leroy Sane shot, buddy.
Onana appeared to have turned a corner when he had completely normal games in the Premier League against Burnley and Crystal Palace, as well as a Carabao Cup clash against the Eagles.
But there was still time to squeeze in a couple more howlers before the October international break. In United’s 3-2 loss to Galatasaray, Onana’s poor pass from the back led to Casemiro’s red card, and he again was beaten with ease for Mauro Icardi’s winner.
Then came Brentford and an almighty thank you to Scott McTominay, whose stoppage-time brace has made a lot of people forget that he ballsed up Mathias Jensen’s pea-rolling opener down the middle of the goal.
United and Ferguson took a chance on De Gea, and it ended up paying off in-part due to how young he was.
It wasn’t hard to see at the time how he would improve as he got older – the basics of shot-stopping and quick reflexes were already there. Once De Gea filled out, he stopped getting out-muscled so easily and his experience led to fewer errors until his later years. Replacing a Premier League stalwart like Edwin van der Sar was no easy feat, either.
But Onana was supposed to be a finished product, one who had played a major role in Inter’s run to the Champions League final last season, one who – crucially – was meant to add another dimension with his kicking.
Onana has so far failed to deliver on those hopes and promises. Maybe that’s a product of his environment. Maybe he was just a tad overrated at Ajax and Inter. Maybe it’s the Glazers’ fault, somehow.
There’s still time for him to turn his United career around and goalkeepers do tend to peak later in their careers, but the early signs have been less than promising.
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