Andre Onana opened up on the mental struggles of adapting to Man United but is adamant he has had a turning point off the pitch.
Andre Onana insists he has had a “turning point” off the pitch in his Manchester United career after a mentally difficult first seven months at the club.
Goalkeeper Onana admitted he has struggled with the adaptation process since his £47.2million move from Inter Milan in July, having described the switch from Ajax to Milan in 2022 as “easy”. The 27-year-old endured a chastening first half of the season when he was blameworthy for costly goals in United’s Champions League group stage campaign and his goalkeeping technique was questioned in the wins against Wolves and Aston Villa last month.
Onana was also recalled to the Cameroon squad in September after a nine-month exile but he only appeared in one of their four Africa Cup of Nations games in January, having been dropped after the 3-1 group stage defeat to Senegal.
Several United teammates have supported Onana through a galling period and he is also grateful for the backing of the supporters.
“I already know the goalkeeper that I am. It took me six months or seven months not to play good, just to feel good,” Onana told the Manchester Evening News and two other journalists. “It was a difficult time for me. Now I’m feeling a bit better.
“Everything was new, it was difficult for me to feel at home because [of] so many reasons; new country. Now I’m feeling good,
“I don’t want to talk about performance because I know the goalkeeper I am and I have done in much more than what I just did so, for me, the most important thing is to be set, to be happy and I will shine.
“I don’t think so,” Onana replied when it was suggested he had mentally beat himself up. “But it was just moments. Sometimes you are faced with a difficult situation.
“I had a difficult six or seven months just feeling good, not playing good because I didn’t think I started to play good. So, it was just something strange, I don’t know.
“It was a good time for me to learn because I learned a lot at that time. Playing in the final of the Champions League and being knocked out in the first stage after a few months later… it was a big lesson for me.
“Now I think I have everything on my back, learn it, move on and try to be happy. That is the most important thing.
“My teammates, they always reminded me who I am and the goalkeeper I am and why I came to this club. They told me, ‘Andre, it took some players two years, for others six months and others no time. You have that personality to turn the situation [around].’
“They always believed in me and told me from the beginning, ‘Andre, the quality is there, it’s just a matter of time.’ I am very happy, especially with the supporters, the fans, they were nice with me even in difficult periods and I’m very thankful. I can only thank them.
“Everything is behind me, now we have to move on and together a great time will come. We just have to do the right thing and the future will be brilliant for all of us.
“I had a turning point – but not on the pitch. Like I said… more mental. Of course, last season I moved from Amsterdam to Milan but that adaptation was quite easy. But it took me seven, eight months here. It was just time to learn and go game by game. I hope we will end on top.”
Onana kept a clean sheet as United progressed to the FA Cup quarter-finals with an 89th-minute winner at Nottingham Forest on Wednesday. The win offered manager Erik ten Hag some brief respite amid ongoing uncertainty over his long-term future.
United head to City for the second Manchester derby of the season on Sunday with nine players expected to be sidelined through injury. While few give United any chance of a positive result, Onana is hopeful they can re-establish momentum this week after the defeat to Fulham on Saturday.
“100%. That’s why we are here,” he stressed. “We are going to try to end on top even if you have a lot of injuries. Of course, it’s not an excuse but this season a lot of things happened, a lot of moments it was difficult for us.
“But as a Manchester United player you must win so we are all responsible for what happened. I take all the responsibility like always. I know how good we are and I believe in my players and that everything will change. Today [against Forest] was important to win and keep going.”
