A handful of Manchester United supporters are showing signs of a concerning new trend. They believed David de Gea could have made a stop each time they gave up a goal.
With the projected change of United’s goalkeeping staff this summer, which saw the addition of Andre Onana and Altay Bayindir and the departure of De Gea and Dean Henderson, the team was always at risk of being reevaluated. De Gea has undoubtedly gotten worse over the years, but his mythical position at the club, which ignores his many flaws and concentrates on his elegant shot-stopping skills, has helped him maintain a cult following. His undisputed universe.
Some people think that’s the only thing that matters for a goalie. They are doing their job if they are able to keep the ball out of the goal. The strongest football clubs in the world now all have more contemporary goalkeepers who are more at ease utilizing their feet than their hands, which serves as evidence that this concept is out of date.
De Gea is regarded as one of the top players when it comes to spectacular saves, but in recent years this number has dropped and many of those saves have evolved into acts of atonement. following your initial error. He fought his own fights since he was a firefighter.
Onana has obviously not had the ideal start to life at United so far, but that doesn’t imply De Gea revisionism is appropriate because he has grown into a far greater issue. Last season, at the same point in the game, the Spaniard had faced nine shots on goal and given up seven goals, while Onana had given up 10 of the 30 shots he had faced.
It’s also important to note that none of Onana’s mistakes were as egregious as De Gea’s in the humiliating 4-0 loss to Brentford last season. The Cameroonian’s poor tackling this season, one of the few areas where De Gea has performed better than him, has not helped, but his poise in possession has made up for it. It was easy to see his shadow.
Onana has started to alter United’s style of play, but it is not an instant fix, and it is obvious that they need more time to adapt before they can be defeated. fair pricing. It will take him some time for him to adjust to his new environment because this will also stand out much more when he plays against a solid defense. Onana’s ability to block shots thrilled United when they acquired him, but his ball-handling prowess and poise when in possession of the ball were the key factors in their decision. He wouldn’t have needed to do much in the season’s opening games had United been anticipated to dominate, but due to some shoddy defending, he was called upon to play more with that injury.
Onana hasn’t been United’s primary defensive issue thus far this season, but if his mistakes start to take precedence over other factors in their defeats, that could change quickly. Sharp criticism of the new goalie, however, is pointless, especially when contrasted to another player who performed far worse the previous season.
Ten Hag had issued his ruthless summons, and he now had to heed them. Regardless of how certain supporters feel about it, Onana is still a goalkeeper.