Nemanja Matic couldn’t win any trophy with Manchester United, Andre Onana pointed out after the Serbian called the Cameronoan one of the worst goalkeepers in the club’s modern history
Not long after Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana declared that his side was superior to Ligue 1’s Olympique Lyon, their opponent for Thursday’s Europa League quarter-final first leg, he came under fire from a former Red Devil. Nemanja Matic, who was a Manchester United player for five years, responded to the Cameroonian, calling him one of the worst goalkeepers to guard the nets at the Old Trafford!
Onana made the controversial statement after Sunday’s Manchester derby that ended 0-0. The shot-stopper said his team will be travelling to France with a winning mentality as they are well aware they are a superior team despite not having a great season domestically.
“I think we are better than them, we just have to go there and show who we are. If we go there with a winning mentality and we are focused, stay compact and together and we follow the game plan we will be winning the game…Of course, it’s not going to be easy, but I think we are way better than them,” Andre Onana had reportedly said.
Serbian Matic, 36, is a two-time Premier League winner with Chelsea. He spent five trophyless seasons with United between 2017 and 2022 before arriving at Lyon via Roma and Rennes. Launching a scathing attack at Onana, Matic said the claim would have had some legitimacy if it came from someone like Peter Schmeichel or Edwin van der Sar. Onana has no right to belittle Lyon, Matic said during the pre-match news conference on Wednesday.
“If you’re one of the worst goalkeepers in Manchester United’s history then you need to take care of what you are talking about… If David De Gea, Peter Schmeichel or Edwin van der Sar said that I would question myself but if you are statistically one of the worst goalkeepers in Manchester United’s modern history, he needs to show that before he says it,” Matic said.
However, Onana seems to have noticed the comments made by Matic as his recent social media post made a veiled attack on his trophyless career at Old Trafford. Taking the opportunity to also claim that, he is not the kind of player who would disrespect another club, Onana said on X that his focus was on coming up with a performance that would make United fans proud.
” would never be disrespectful to another club. 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 post read.