Andre Onana has been branded “one of the worst goalkeepers in the history of Manchester United” by Lyon midfielder Nemanja Matic as a war of words erupted before their Europa League quarter-final.
The United No 1 had predicted his team would progress to the semi-finals because they were “way better” than their French counterparts.
But Onana’s remarks in the wake of Sunday’s 0-0 draw against Manchester City triggered a scathing riposte from Matic, the former United player.
Asked about Onana’s comments at a press conference on Wednesday to preview the first leg of the quarter-final at the Groupama Stadium, Matic, who joined Lyon last summer, said, puffing out his cheeks: “Onana? You know, I respect everyone but to say that then you need to give the answer.
“If you are one of the worst goalkeepers in Man United’s history, you need to take care of what you are talking [about].
“If David de Gea or Peter Schmeichel or [Edwin] van der Sar said that, then I would question myself.
“But if you’re one of the statistically worst goalkeepers in Man United’s modern history, then he needs to show that before he says. We will see.”
‘I’ve lifted trophies with United’
The row then escalated when Onana hit back at Matic on social media and taunted the Serbian over his failure to win a trophy at United. Matic, who was brought to Old Trafford by Jose Mourinho, in the summer of 2017, was a beaten FA Cup and Europa League finalist with United in 2018 and 2021 respectively.
“I would never be disrespectful to another club,” said Onana, who won the FA Cup with United last season.
“We know that tomorrow will be a difficult game against a strong opponent. We focus on preparing a performance to make our fans proud. At least I’ve lifted trophies with the greatest club in the world. Some can’t say the same.”
The spat has raised the stakes ahead of the tie, with the Europa League effectively representing United’s last chance of qualifying for the Champions League this season. United are facing a potential £100m blackhole in their finances if they miss out.
Onana joined United from Inter Milan in the summer of 2023 for £47.2 million as a replacement for De Gea, who was Matic’s team-mate at Old Trafford for five years.
The Cameroonian endured a disappointing start to his debut season at United, with a series of high-profile errors contributing to the team’s elimination at the end of the Champions League group stages.
Onana showed signs of improvement during the second half of the campaign but his form has dipped again this term.
He has also faced complaints in recent weeks from United fans over the speed of his distribution.
‘Amorim is the right profile’
Matic had some kinder words for the United head coach Ruben Amorim, with whom he played at Benfica between 2011 and 2014, and believes he can restore success at the Manchester club.
“It’s difficult to know what’s going to happen. I’m sure that he has the capacity to do that. He needs time,” Matic said. “In football today people don’t have time but I’m sure he’s the right profile. He’s a young coach, with lots of energy. He needs support.
“It’s not easy. In some other leagues, maybe he will have an easier job, but in the Premier League if you are not 100 per cent ready, if you don’t have a very good team, the other teams punish you.
“It’s so difficult to win the games in the Premier League because today every team has quality, a lot of good players. They all have good coaches, so it’s hard.
“It’s hard in the Premier League if the things are not right. It’s so difficult to turn things [around] in a short period, but step by step I believe that he can do very good. But I hope that he will not start tomorrow!”
Lyon, who are fifth in Ligue 1, have lost just one of their past seven matches. United’s 0-0 draw against City left them languishing at 13th in the table.
Kobbie Mainoo could feature in the first leg in France after the England midfielder trained with the first team on Wednesday morning.
The 19-year-old has not played for two months due to injury. Matthijs de Ligt has not travelled but fellow defender Luke Shaw has been included.
The three worst goalkeepers in United’s history
Massimo Taibi (1999-2000)
Signed as emergency back-up for Fabian Barthez from Venezia for £4.5m on deadline day in August 1999, the Italian conceded 11 goals in his four appearances for the club, including letting a tame shot from Matt Le Tissier squirm through his legs. His final game was a 5-0 defeat to Chelsea. He effectively cost United more than £1 million per game. One of Sir Alex Ferguson’s worst ever signings.
Victor Valdes (2014-2016)
The Catalan may have won three Champions Leagues with Barcelona but his 18-month spell at Old Trafford was a thoroughly miserable experience. He made just two appearances for Louis van Gaal before being transfer listed after the Dutchman claimed the goalkeeper refused to play in a reserve game and was subsequently not given a squad number for the forthcoming season. Once a move to Besiktas then fell through, Valdes spent the next six months frozen out before joining Standard Liege in a loan deal that ended up being cut short. His Old Trafford nightmare eventually ended in July 2016 when he joined Middlesbrough on a free.
Mark Bosnich (1999–2001)
The Australian, who had been at United between 1989 and 1991 as a youngster, was re-signed by Ferguson on a free transfer in 1999 as a replacement for the great Peter Schmeichel. He would win the Premier League title in his first season but never convinced Ferguson, who ended up passing the No. 1 spot around between Bosnich, Raimond van der Gouw and the aforementioned Taibi. The following summer United signed Fabian Barthez and Bosnich soon found himself relegated to third choice.
Paul Scholes later labelled Bosnich as his worst ever United team. “He came to us and was so unprofessional. Honestly, it was ridiculous,” the former United midfielder said. “In shooting practice, you normally have like 15-20 minutes, after three shots he was knackered. And I never realised, he couldn’t kick a football! Honestly, I’d never seen anything like it.”
In his 2013 autobiography, Ferguson branded Bosnich a “terrible professional”. Bosnich responded, saying, “The fact remains that I was the only player he signed twice at Manchester United. I’m honoured to be mentioned. He’s entitled to his view and I’m entitled to mine.”