Erik ten Hag accepts blame for Andre Onana after Rio Ferdinand “mistake” warning

Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag has backed goalkeeper Andre Onana after the shot-stopper survived a late penalty scare against Wolves in his Red Devils debut

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Erik ten Hag has warned goalkeeper Andre Onana that he must learn ‘when to be passive’ after an error of judgement almost cost Manchester United in their victory over Wolves.

The debutant shot-stopper largely impressed on his Red Devils debut, following his transfer from Inter this summer, by producing several fine saves and keeping a clean sheet. However, he was fortunate not to give away a penalty in stoppage time after clattering into substitute Sasa Kalajdzic off the ball.

Wolves boss Gary O’Neil received an apology from referees’ chief Jon Moss after the incident, while the game’s referee Simon Hooper and VAR Michael Salisbury were dropped for this weekend’s round of matches due to not calling the incident.

Onana got away with his error to secure his clean sheet, but his boss Erik ten Hag – who also coached the goalkeeper at Ajax – insisted that he encourages his proactive nature. The United manager did however warn that Onana must learn not to always be playing on the front foot.

“I think he is very proactive, that is what we want,” Ten Hag said. “We want proactive players. But of course, he has to manage himself as well, when to be proactive and when to be passive. But I will encourage, I like it. Players who are proactive and on the front foot, they are the type of players we need.”

Have Your Say! Is Onana an upgrade on De Gea for Man Utd ? Tell us what you think here.

Onana survived a late penalty scare in Man United’s win over Wolves

Former United defender Rio Ferdinand had previously forecast that Onana, despite having the potential to be a transformative signing at Old Trafford, would also make the occasional error for United due to his style of play.

“He’ll give United more confidence and more ability to play out from the back and I think he suits an Erik ten Hag team,” Ferdinand explained to Vibe with FIVE earlier this summer. “He’s a real modern-day goalkeeper. You see teams pressing him and he doesn’t even panic.

“He gets the ball in, brings on the press says ‘Come on, come to me’ and when that player comes to him he knows there’s a player free somewhere else and he normally finds them.

“I think there will be mistakes and playing that risky way you do have mistakes and that happens, but it’s about staying true to your beliefs, finding the right balance and remaining calm throughout those periods.”

Onana replaced the long-serving David de Gea as United’s No.1 goalkeeper this summer, with United still on the lookout for a backup goalkeeper with question marks over the future of Dean Henderson – who is open to leaving the club permanently.

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