Manchester United have a problem. And his name is Andre Onana.
The forgotten Cameroon keeper was shipped out to Trabzonspor in September after losing his place to Senne Lammens . But things in Turkey haven’t gone to plan. And now United face a summer dilemma: take a massive hit or get stuck with a player they don’t want .
THE RISE AND FALL
Remember when Onana was United’s No.1? A £47m signing from Inter, meant to be the long term solution . Then he spent most of pre season injured, Altay Bayindir stepped up, and by the time Onana was fit, his place was gone.
A disastrous cameo against Grimsby Town sealed his fate. Lammens arrived, took the gloves, and Onana was packed off to Trabzonspor .
THE TURKEY NIGHTMARE
It started brightly. One journalist told MEN Sport he was “outstanding” in early games . But the momentum has stuttered badly.
Thirty one goals conceded in 21 appearances. Just four clean sheets three of them in 2025 . Trabzonspor boss Fatih Tekke admits it’s been inconsistent: good in some matches, not good enough in others .
The stats don’t lie. Onana has the worst save percentage in the Turkish Super Lig among regular starters . He’s been dropped twice. The fans have turned.
THE PRICE TAG PROBLEM
Here’s the kicker. Trabzonspor vice president Zeyyat Kafkas has been brutally honest about the financials:
“As the figure from Manchester United for the purchase of Andre Onana is in the range of €45/50m (£40/43m), our president has sincerely informed the community in line with Trabzonspor’s realities.”
Translation: we’re not paying that.
United spent £18.2m on Lammens. If a club is going to spend more than double that on a keeper, they’ll want someone better than Onana . No one’s paying £43m for a shot stopper who’s flopped in Turkey.
THE CROSSROADS
Onana finds himself at a crossroads. The United he’ll return to is vastly different to the one he left. Lammens is established. Bayindir might exit. But Onana isn’t needed to warm the bench.
United have options:
Stick to their guns, hope someone pays up and risk being stuck with him
Lower the price, take a loss, but get his wages off the books
Too often United have been left with players they can’t sell on big money contracts . Onana has no future at Old Trafford. The club would be wise to offload him.
But they’re not getting £43m. Not even close.
THE VERDICT
Onana’s United career is over. It’s just a question of how much of a financial hit they’re willing to take.
The alternative? Another season of paying a keeper to sit elsewhere while his value plummets further. United have been here before. They know how this ends.
Sometimes you have to cut your losses. This is one of those times.
