Manchester United were stunned by FC Copenhagen in a 4-3 loss on Wednesday night.
This loss sees Man United slump to last place in their Champions League group, reducing their chance of progressing to the round of 16 with just two group matches left to play.
While conceding four goals is not something he would want to get accustomed to, goalkeeper Andre Onana continued to show signs of improvement with a confident and resolute performance.
During the opening 42 minutes, United played some impressive football, scoring two goals and constantly bombarding Copenhagen’s penalty area.
Although Copenhagen launched some sporadic counter-attacks, Onana proved solid, saving a close-range strike by Rasmus Falk and racing off his line to claim a threatening cross from Mohammed Elyounoussi.
United’s game was fundamentally changed for the worse when Marcus Rashford was sent off three minutes before half-time.
At first, United looked confident even with 10 men, however, the cracks in their defence soon started to emerge.
Onana did well to race out toward the halfway line and clear a threatening cross to Elyounoussi, showing the legwork and confidence outside of the box that made him such an appealing transfer this past summer.
Still, Copenhagen would soon find the back of the net, capitalising on their man advantage.
On the stroke of half time, Copenhagen received a penalty that the United shot-stopper could do little about, with the home team levelling the score going into the break.
In the second half, Onana saved a surprise shot from distance by Denis Vavro moments before blocking a glancing header.
Unfortunately, it would be his defenders that would let him down, with Diogo Dalot switching off to allow Copenhagen through to score a third while substitute Roony Bardghji pounced on a loose ball to score the home side’s winner.
Throughout the match, Onana made four saves in total along with a punch and one high claim.
The Cameroonian continued to show strong legwork, completing 40 of his 48 attempted passes for an 83% passing accuracy.
Onana’s long balls also proved effective, with the 27 year old completing 11 of 19 attempts.
Notably, the goalkeeper got 60 touches on the ball, impressively outnumbering the majority of the outfielder players on both teams.
While it may have been a scoreline to forget, Onana showed further signs of improvement as he continues to ease into his role as United’s first-choice keeper.
Should his performances remain consistent, Onana should prove to be the goalkeeper that United requires.
Still, a lot depends on his defenders, who continued to show signs of vulnerability once things weren’t going United’s way.
(Stats via Sofascore)