Andre Onana ‘shocked’ by Man United wage cut, as hefty transfer fee that they ‘cannot afford to sell under-fire goalkeeper for any less than’ is named
Andre Onana has been left ‘shocked’ by his wage cut at Manchester United this season and the club ‘cannot afford’ to get rid of the under-fire goalkeeper for less than £26million this summer.
The 29-year-old, who is enduring a dreadful season that reached a new low last week, saw his wage cut this term due to United’s failure to qualify for the Champions League.
According to the Athletic, Onana’s reduced wage shocked him and even led to him speaking to now-departed sporting director Dan Ashworth about the issue.
Onana’s form has dropped off a cliff this season and hit a new nadir with two blunders leading to goals in the 2-2 draw away at Lyon in the Europa League quarter-final first leg last week.
He was dropped entirely from the United matchday squad for their heavy 4-1 defeat by Newcastle on Sunday, with manager Ruben Amorim telling him to ‘disconnect’.
Onana cost United £43.8m from Inter Milan in the summer of 2023, a considerable outlay for the Cameroonian.
Andre Onana, who was dropped after two mistakes led to goals against Lyon, was said to be shocked at his reduced wage at Manchester United this season
Ruben Amorim may be hamstrung by the fact that United cannot afford to sell Onana for less than £26m without it going down as an accounting loss
But now the Athletic report that Onana is likely to stay at the club despite his dreadful performances because they cannot afford to sell him for less than a certain amount.
He signed a five-year deal at Old Trafford and the fee was amortised over the length of that contract, meaning his value stands at around £26m.
At this point in time, it seems incredibly unlikely that any club would stump up that kind of money to take Onana off United’s hands.
United will be wary of the profit and sustainability hit of selling the stopper below that £26m fee because it would go down in the books as a loss.
Given United’s precarious finances, that kind of hit would be unconscionable so a stay or possible loan away are the most likely options.
Onana has made nine errors leading to goals across all competitions since the start of 2023-24.
That’s more than any other goalkeeper in the Premier League during the same period and it seems incredibly unlikely that he will be the No 1 for Amorim next season.
On dropping Onana prior to the Newcastle defeat, the manager explained: ”It is a normal thing. Sometimes, you have to push the player to play again, sometimes you have to let him disconnect a little bit.
Altay Bayindir replaced Onana for the 4-1 defeat at Newcastle but made a huge mistake
Onana’s form has been extremely poor but he is likely to come back into the side
‘He will be in training to prepare for the next one [Lyon] so I felt that it was a good time for Andre to disconnect.
‘I think he was okay [about it] because I explained and then, you don’t need to like [it], but you understand because I explain every situation.
‘It’s a normal situation. You have to manage everything, sometimes people just look at the physical aspect but the mental aspect is really, really important.
‘It’s for just one game and we give Altay an opportunity, he deserves it also and then, again, tomorrow is a new life and we will prepare for the next one.’
Bayındır was directly at fault for one of Newcastle’s goals with a risky pass and hardly presented a strong argument himself to replace Onana, who seems likely to come back in for Thursday’s return leg against Lyon.
Roy Keane savaged the Turkish keeper, saying: ‘It’s absolutely too risky. There’s players around you. At the highest level, it’s about your decision making.
‘This is big boy stuff. You’re up at Newcastle, Newcastle are flying, you do your own homework on who they’re playing and when they’re pressing you.
‘If you’re going to go long, make sure you go too far, so then at least it’s up the pitch. But if you lose it there, someone is through on goal on top of you. That’s just common sense.’
Onana’s recent calamities came after former United midfielder, now at Lyon, Nemanja Matic, called him ‘one of the worst goalkeepers’ in the club’s history.
He bit back, saying: ”At least I’ve lifted trophies with the greatest club in the world. Some can’t say the same.’
Onana was then forced to eat his words, with a terrible display in the first leg and will be desperate for a better outing this week, if he is given the nod to start.
Aaron Ramsdale ‘is being eyed’ as a potential replacement, according to the Sun. Relegated with Southampton this season, he is understood to prefer a move to remain in the top flight.
