ANDRE ONANA has been offered some words of wisdom on dealing with the pressures of being a goalkeeper at Manchester United.
Former Red Devils shot-stopper Anders Lindegaard bluntly explained the demands of the job after Man Utd’s Legends lost to former Celtic stars on Saturday.
Lindegaard was overjoyed to be back at Old Trafford as he shared goalkeeping duties with Kevin Pilkington and Raimond van der Gouw in the Legends’ match.
After Wayne Rooney’s sublime 25-yard free-kick, Celtic equalised through Gary Hooper and would go onto win 4-3 on penalties.
After the charity game, Lindegaard said: “Onana has come back from a difficult start and now he is doing a lot better.
“But there’s no magic formula to overcome that pressure. That is the job. The job is to handle that pressure.
“If you can’t do it, or you won’t do it, the job is not for you.”
The 40-year-old former Denmark international officially joined the Red Devils in January 2011 before leaving in the summer of 2015.
Meanwhile, all eyes are on Onana as he has already conceded five goals this season after Man Utd’s dismal 3-0 defeat to rivals Liverpool last Sunday.
The Cameroonian stopper, who has a reputation for the odd howler, again got his footing all wrong for Mo Salah’s goal on the weekend.
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Gary Neville once said: “Being the Man Utd keeper was the most difficult job in English football.”
The Sky Sports pundit was referencing the magnifying glass placed on every single United goalkeeper since the Premier League began.
After arriving for £47m last summer, Onana has been subject to a mixed reaction from fans, after several embarrassing blunders in the Champions League group stage saw United drop out early last season.
He let the ball slip through his gloves against Bayern Munich, often passed the ball to opponents near is own box, and let Hakim Ziyech’s free-kick in against Galatasaray to concede 15 goals in six European games.
Onana improved somewhat throughout the season, but still seems slow to react to low shots, after saying he is prepared to take more “risks” .
And the spot-light is growing after Man Utd finished a record low eighth last term, and had a minus one goal difference.
Erik ten Hag brought Onana in to replace David de Gea, who was out of his £375,000-per-week contract.
The Spaniard said goodbye to Old Trafford after 12 years behind the sticks and has since joined Serie A side Fiorentina on a one-year-deal.
De Gea was adorned by United fans for the majority of his time there, picking up the club’s Player of the Year on four occasions.
But the 33-year-old fell victim to the same pressure Onana’s now facing, after a few clangers of his own in his later years.