The ‘signing of the season’ prediction about Andre Onana made by former Man Utd player that instantly backfired

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Manchester United had high hopes for Andre Onana when he signed for the club in 2023.

Andre Onana is departing Manchester United on loan to sign with Trabzonspor for the rest of the 2025/26 season.

The move comes after he fell down the pecking order following Senne Lammens’ arrival, with Ruben Amorim also preferring Altay Bayindir.

Onana was upset to be pushed out, but looking at the totality of his time at Manchester United, the consistent mistakes were too much.

Andre Onana was tipped for success

Andre Onana was picked out by Erik ten Hag as David de Gea’s replacement in summer 2023, after the Spaniard was released.

Ten Hag had worked with Onana before at Ajax, and had high hopes for the Cameroon international, who had just helped Inter Milan reach the Champions League Final.

And among those who backed Onana to succeed, nobody had higher hopes than former Manchester United midfielder Owen Hargreaves.

Speaking to the Premier League’s website ahead of the start of the 2023/24 season, Hargreaves backed Onana to be the best signing of the season.

Hargreaves said: “People will be blown away by the way he plays, how good he is with his feet. He’s a fantastic shot-stopper as well.

“He’s got great size, great presence. He’s been very successful in the leagues that he’s played in and he’s going to become a leader.”

Onana failed to meet expectations

Andre Onana’s 2023/24 season got off to a disastrous start, where he almost gave away a penalty in his opening game against Wolves.

Onana’s ‘presence’ did not do him much good in the subsequent home game when he messed up a one-v-one against Nottingham Forest’s Taiwo Awoniyi.

His shot-stopping was mixed, Onana was capable of making excellent diving saves, but he often allowed in weak efforts that looked like they should have been saved.

Onana’s passing was one of the standout features to his game, but Erik ten Hag or Ruben Amorim never really found a way to utilise it. He did not show this to the best of his ability at United during his time at the club, leaving many to wonder whether this hype was overblown.

Within months, Onana had become a major contributory factor to United’s Champions League exit, with his reputation taking a hit, and any ‘signing of the season’ hopes left in tatters.