Tim Howard expressed his concern over Andre Onana’s ability to remain Manchester United’s starting goalkeeper following his poor performance against Everton.
While Man United launched a thrilling second-half comeback courtesy of a sublime Bruno Fernandes free-kick and a breathtaking volley by Manuel Ugarte, the team’s defence remained a massive problem.
Without getting off to a poor start, no late comeback would have been necessary. In fact, United could have secured a comfortable win given the calibre of their opposition.
Although the entire defence could share the blame for conceding two first-half goals, Onana was a core part of the problem in Howard’s eyes.
“With Onana, you’re just seeing hand shape, you’re seeing, leaving balls in bad areas, and it’s consistent,” Howard remarked.
“So I think there’s a worry there because he’s actually now at an age where that development should have happened years ago,” the former United keeper continued. “This isn’t something that can be corrected kind of overnight.”
Despite the magnitude of this issue, Howard appeared hopeful that manager Ruben Amorim would realise Onana’s problem and change things up.
“I think Amorim would probably likely change it. Not immediately though. I don’t think that’s top of the priority list.”
“But there is some issues there in terms of easy goals,” Howard concluded.
Onana was certainly at the heart of United’s defensive vulnerability when it came to Everton’s second goal.
He parried a shot from Jack Harrison that he should have caught, thereby allowing Beto to score off the rebound to break the deadlock.
While Onana has produced some fine saves during his tenure at United, his extensive series of slip-ups have become a major concern for United, making it difficult for him to be trusted.
If Howard’s observation proves to be correct, Amorim will need to do some serious introspection about who his starting goalkeeper should be going forward. Otherwise, some transfer market activity may be needed this summer.
Featured image Lewis Storey via Getty Images
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Mathew Cohen
A faithful Manchester United supporter, Mathew has worked as a football writer and analyst for SB Nation, FanSided, and now The Peoples Person. Mathew’s heroes include David Beckham, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Sir Alex Ferguson, all of whom played their part in creating some special childhood memories.
