Andre Onana appeared to aim a thinly veiled dig at his former Manchester United teammates when reflecting on his start to life at Trabzonspor.
Onana largely struggled to live up to the billing at Old Trafford following a £47million move from Inter Milan in 2023.
After two disappointing seasons at United, the Cameroon international was eventually shipped out on loan to Turkey, with his last appearance coming in a shock Carabao Cup defeat to League Two side Grimsby Town.
But the 29-year-old has made a positive start to life in Turkey, an ever-present in the Trabzonspor team which has only tasted defeat once since his arrival.
Two clean sheets in his last three games is further evidence that Onana is beginning to rediscover the kind of form that saw him excel at Ajax and then Inter Milan, and which also saw him garner heavy praise from Pep Guardiola.
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Speaking in 2023, the Manchester City manager said of the then Inter keeper: ‘Onana makes it really difficult to deploy a high press against.
‘You cannot press the goalkeeper properly … for the way they play, with the high press, Onana is an exceptional goalkeeper to take the position to build-up. Really, really good.’
And asked about those comments by Turkish outlet Sporx, Onana suggested that his life is made much easier if he is playing alongside teammates that help him out.
‘Most of the time, the important thing for me is to try to do the best for the team,’ he said.
‘If I have to create a play, I analyse it first. Are the opponents pressing, are they pressing with their wingers, are they pressing with their strikers, or are their centre-backs coming forward?
‘These are the things I need to see when I have the ball. I watch how the opponents are moving and then I look at the options and make my decision.
‘Of course, it’s always great to hear a comment like that from Pep Guardiola. He’s one of the best managers in the history of football.
‘But as I always say, most of the time, it’s my teammates who give me the options when I’m building up the game. If they help me, the work looks much better.’
Back out United, Onana was replaced by deadline-day signing Senne Lammens who is yet to lose since making his debut for Ruben Amroims’s side.
And the young Belgian has quickly earned the respect of his new teammates and pundits alike, with Gary Neville noting: ‘The goalkeeper looks like he’s a lot more solid and stable than the other two.
‘I like goalkeepers who’ve got a composure to them, a relaxed manner. You can see it in the Lammens.
‘He is somebody who looks composed, and that’s not easy. I’ve said it before that the toughest job possible is to be the United goalkeeper. He’s settled in well.’
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