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Former Manchester United star Wes Brown believes Ruben Amorim should reinstate Andre Onana for Thursday night’s season-defining Europa League clash with Olympique Lyonnais, despite the Cameroonian goalkeeper’s mistakes in the reverse fixture last week.
Bilbao or Bust
Success in Europe represents the Red Devils’ last hope of salvaging success in an otherwise dismal season for the club.
Victory in Bilbao, where the final is set to take place on May 21, would reward United with another trophy in their glittering cabinet. But, more crucially, it would also grant first-seed qualification into next season’s Champions League and the array of financial benefits which Europe’s elite competition brings.
United face Lyon at Old Trafford in the second-leg of their Europa League quarter-final after drawing the first-leg 2-2 in France. A semi-final against either Athletic Club or Rangers, who also drew their first-leg, awaits the winner.
Onana, 29, was at fault for both of Lyon’s goals as the goalkeeper snatched a draw from the jaws of victory after substitute Joshua Zirkzee had appeared to have won the game for the Reds with an 88th minute header.
It leaves the tie evenly poised as the elimination of the away goal rule from European fixtures means the two sides will begin proceedings on level terms, despite United’s double at the Groupama Stadium.
But there is serious doubt over who Amorim will pick between the sticks on Thursday night after Onana was omitted from the squad for yesterday’s tip to St James’ Park to face Newcastle in the Premier League.
Onana or Bayindir?
The Portuguese coach chose to withdraw Onana from the firing line by resting the 29-year-old and playing backup goalkeeper Altay Bayindir in his place. However, there was considerable clamour from the Red Devil fanbase to make this switch a permanent one with supporters having reached breaking point over Onana’s continued errors.
In all competitions, no Premier League shot stopper has committed more mistakes leading to goals than Onana since he joined United in 2023. The ball-playing abilities, which made him one of Europe’s most impressive goalkeepers, have also largely abandoned him in this time.
The pressure United will face on Thursday night will be acute; and there is a feeling that when the pressure ramps up, the likelihood of Onana making a mistake increases with it.
But, speaking in an exclusive interview with The Peoples Person, courtesy of AOS, Wes Brown revealed he would “put Onana back in” but concedes Amorim is in a “very tough position” over the decision.
Bayindir made a dreadful error to put Newcastle 4-1 up on Sunday afternoon as the goalkeeping curse at United continued to rear its ugly head. The Turkish international had delivered a reasonable performance prior to this mistake, though his passing out from the back often looked shaky.
Former defender Brown, who Sir Alex Ferguson once described as England’s “best natural defender,” believes the match was a “really good opportunity [for Bayindir] to put his foot in the door, but obviously he made a mistake, so the manager is in a very tough position.”
The 45-year-old acknowledges Onana’s error for Lyon’s opener was ” big one” which has created a “lot of pressure” for the goalkeeper to deal with. But he feels the Cameroonian has to “justify” this poor performance by helping United to overcome Lyon on Thursday, rather than shying away from the moment.
“There’s a lot of pressure on [Onana] and on Thursday we’re all going to find out. He has to justify that, it’s not like you can hide.”
Using Harry Maguire as Inspiration
Brown, who won the 2008 Champions League and formed one of the best defensive units in United’s history, does not believe the club’s finances will allow for a new goalkeeper to be high on the agenda this summer.
On the topic of a replacement for Onana, the former defender states, “I don’t think that’s the priority,” citing the need for reinforcements up front as more important.
Brown believes Amorim could easily make “seven or eight big changes” to his starting XI but United’s budget, which will be constrained by the acute pressure of PSR, will not stretch to that level of spending.
Instead, the 45-year-old offers, Onana should seek to take inspiration from teammate Harry Maguire, whose dip in form two years ago saw United seek to sell the England international to West Ham, only for the deal to fall through.
In response, Maguire has since forced his way back into the fold at Old Trafford after an impressive season last campaign, which has continued under Amorim this year with the Portuguese coach publicly praising the 32-year-old defender who saw his contract extended by twelve months in January.
“Look at Harry now when he plays, he’s back to his best in a way and that’s what Onana has to try and do,” Brown concludes.
The former United star acknowledges the importance of a steady goalkeeper in a European quarter-final, having played with one of the best in Edwin van der Sar – “When you get to that point, you cannot afford your goalkeeper making such bad errors” – but maintains Onana is the best option for the match.
Increasingly, Thursday night feels like a make-or-break moment for Onana’s career at Old Trafford. If he starts and helps United win, the mistakes of the previous leg will temporarily drift to the back of supporters’ minds.
But if he starts and makes another error, which dumps the Red Devils out of Europe, Amorim will surely demand the club makes a new goalkeeper a priority in the summer, even if Brown thinks the finances will not allow it. There may be a riot in Greater Manchester if not.
Featured image Michael Regan via Getty Images
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