'Main thing' - David de Gea has already told Andre Onana how to survive at Man United after latest howler
Andre Onana was caught out twice as Manchester United drew 2-2 with Lyon in the Europa League on Thursday night.
Andre Onana is feeling the heat at Manchester United after two more high profile errors - but the Cameroon international can look at his Old Trafford predecessor if he wants to see light at the end of the tunnel.
Onana was at fault for both Lyon goals in the 2-2 Europa League draw on the back of a war of words with former United midfielder and current Lyon man Nemanja Matic. The Serbian labelled Onana as one of United's worst ever keepers in the build-up to the tie and Onana again struggled.
The 29-year-old's form is under the microscope less than two years into his United career following a £43million move from Inter Milan. Onana's struggles are reminiscent of those suffered by David de Gea in his early months at Old Trafford.
De Gea arrived at Old Trafford in 2011 as a young and raw goalkeeper. His debut campaign was marred by several errors, with opponents seizing on his lack of a physical presence and susceptibility at set pieces.
It prompted plenty to question Sir Alex Ferguson's decision to splash out £18.9million on the Spaniard as United sought a long-term replacement for Edwin van der Sar, who had departed that summer.
De Gea's debut season was one to forget but, after a mixed start to his second campaign, where he was dropped and replaced by Anders Lindegaard in the opening weeks only for the Dane to suffer an injury, the Spaniard began to find his form and ended the season in the PFA Team of the Year as United won the Premier League.
He went on to make more than 500 appearances for United and became a multiple winner of the club's player of the year award. De Gea is proof that things can be turned around at a club and in 2018 he reflected on his improvements at United with some words that will be salient to Onana now.
"I was a young lad, new on the block coming from a different country to a different culture," said De Gea, speaking to Sky Sports.
"I didn't speak the language and everything was different; the food and the culture. It was tough and there were some difficult moments, but what I never did was give up the faith I had in myself.
"You've got to trust in your own ability, back yourself and the main thing is work really, really hard and fight to improve. I think looking back and at the person I am today, I'm a better goalkeeper for it and more mature as a person. In terms of a player and person, I'm a much different David de Gea."
---
Here at the Manchester Evening News, we’re dedicated to bringing you the best Manchester United coverage and analysis.
Make sure you don’t miss out on the latest United news by joining our free WhatsApp group. You can get all the breaking news and best analysis sent straight to your phone by clicking here to subscribe.
You can also subscribe to our free newsletter service. Click here to be sent all the day’s biggest stories.
And finally, if you’d rather listen to our expert analysis then make sure to check out our Manchester is Red podcast, featuring The Samuel Luckhurst Show and The Midweek Debate. Our shows are available on all podcast platforms, including Spotify and Apple Podcasts, and you can also watch along on YouTube.