Cameroonian goalkeeper André Onana is making headlines in Africa due to his late arrival at AFCON 2023. While Manchester United did everything to keep him until January 15th, it’s now revealed that the English club spent a significant amount to facilitate the deal with the 27-year-old player.
Arriving in England last summer, André Onana probably did not anticipate the twists and turns surrounding his situation. Presented with fanfare as the model goalkeeper Manchester United needed to address the poor performances of David De Gea, who was eventually let go, the Cameroonian goalkeeper hasn’t completely convinced. More or less convincing in the Premier League, he disappointed greatly in the Champions League with Manchester United. Recalled to the national team for AFCON 2023, Onana became notable for an arrangement that didn’t sit well with everyone.
The special agreement
Indeed, while clubs were supposed to release players called up for the competition by January 1st, Manchester United kept André Onana until January 14th, one day after the start of the competition and one day before Cameroon’s entry into AFCON 2023. According to reports, the English club, wishing to keep its goalkeeper for two important matches at the beginning of the year, managed to convince FECAFOOT to approve a surprising deal. The deal was for the former Inter Milan goalkeeper to play the Premier League match against Tottenham on Sunday the 14th and then play the next day with Cameroon in Ivory Coast.
To achieve this, a special arrangement had to be put in place to facilitate a rapid and comfortable journey for the 27-year-old goalkeeper, which was done. A few hours after the match between United and Spurs, which ended in a 2-2 draw, André Onana traveled by private jet throughout the night and landed in Abidjan in the early morning. Due to meteorological problems, he couldn’t land directly in Yamoussoukro, where Group C of Cameroon is based at AFCON 2023.
The special expense
Arriving just a few hours before the Guinea match, he did not play the first match for the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon despite the pre-established agreement. This Saturday, the day after the match against Senegal where Onana played and conceded three goals, the England newspaper The Athletic reveals the cost of Manchester United’s goalkeeper’s trip. According to the tabloid’s information, it was the Reds Devils who offered to cover the express travel of their goalkeeper to keep him until the eve of his national team’s first match at AFCON.
“The cost of the flight (Onana’s) with a company called VistaJet was between $12,000 and $20,000 per hour spent in the air. The final cost depends on the type of membership and the selected plane – an approximately eight-hour journey means that United paid a minimum of $100,000 (around £79,000) to retain Onana as long as possible before the start of Cameroon’s campaign at this AFCON,” reveals The Athletic. In CFA francs, this amounts to a trifling sum of 60 million spent on André Onana, who ultimately failed to keep a clean sheet against Tottenham and did not play in the first match of AFCON 2023.
In the end, Cameroon is not better off with their star goalkeeper, who was heavily criticized after the defeat against Senegal, as reported by Foot Mercato. For the agreement that cost a lot of money, the expected result is disappointing, considering that this affair has sown much discord and controversy around the Cameroonian national team, which is not in good shape at all. For Manchester United, there was an opportunity to do without Onana and give a great chance to the Turkish substitute goalkeeper, who also arrived last summer, waiting for his turn to show what he is capable of.
See you next Tuesday to find out if Onana will perform better with Cameroon, continue in the competition, or return to Manchester United earlier than expected.
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