Manchester United looked abysmal yesterday. Not only did they hardly threaten the Arsenal defence, but Erik ten Hag’s shocking substitutions demonstrated how their squad might not be up to scratch with the other Premier League title contenders.
However, despite the poor result and performance, it wasn’t all doom and gloom. In fact, there were some signs of promise from Erik ten Hag’s men on the field. Firstly, reverting Marcus Rashford back to his position on the wing is a promising move. But despite picking up United’s only goal, Rashford wasn’t the best player in a United jersey yesterday.
In fact, it was Andre Onana. The Cameroonian goalkeeper was described by Gary Neville in commentary as “United’s best outfield player”. Despite this obviously being irony, there is truth to the statement as Onana was the player who dictated play the most for United, as much of the game consisted of them playing the ball in their own half.
Manchester United will miss Andre Onana for up to TWO months
Speaking of Onana, there’s one nagging thought at the back of Erik ten Hag’s mind. Of course, Onana has decided to re-enter international duty, following his previous step-back due to falling out with the coach.
According to the Daily Mail, this means that Andre Onana could miss up two seven games or two months of football for Manchester United, throughout January and February.
As we know from Premier League experience, this is when the competition really begins to heat up and teams must be at their best as the table is taking shape. This is where Manchester United formed their “title charge” last season, as a string of positive results helped them look like genuine contenders, albeit this amounted to nothing in the end.
Therefore, with Onana missing during a pivotal period, surely a goalkeeper will be signed in January – But who do you think that will be?