Andre Onana: Man Utd's new 'holding midfield' goalkeeper

With the completion of Andre Onana's move to Manchester United from Internazionale Milano, Ryan Benson of Opta Analyst looks at what to expect from the goalkeeper described as a player who could be a "holding midfielder".

Andre Onana (Manchester United)

For years, the role and importance of the goalkeeper was hugely undervalued, possibly misunderstood and underutilised.

They were there to stop the ball going in the goal, and that was pretty much it. So, when maverick goalkeepers came along, Rene Higuita, Jorge Campos, Jose Luis Chilavert and Fabien Barthez, that made them even more memorable. 

But no longer is the goalkeeper just seen as the 11th player. More and more they’re utilised as a de facto 11th outfielder, meaning the qualities that underpinned Higuita & Co are becoming key components in the modern game.

The playmaking goalkeeper

Onana is arguably the most extreme example of this kind of goalkeeper at the elite level of the sport. He’s a risk taker, has a positive and creative mentality, and is every inch the embodiment of a modern goalkeeper.

Moving for Onana as David De Gea’s replacement is certainly a case of going from one extreme to another. The latter simply isn’t an assuring presence on the ball; the former is probably among the world’s calmest and most confident goalkeepers in possession.

It shouldn’t be understated just how good De Gea has been for Man Utd over more than a decade at Old Trafford, but it’s also been clear that there are better all-round 'keepers.

Erik ten Hag often spoke highly of the Spaniard, but the writing was on the wall as soon as the Dutchman became Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s successor last year.

“From every area of the team, I want productivity,” Ten Hag said in pre-season last year. “That’s the most important thing, that players take the initiative on and off the ball, in offence and defence.”

Reliable on the ball

So, the arrival of Onana could have a transformational impact at United.

They have some key players in defensive areas who are effective at playing through the lines, such as Lisandro Martinez, Luke Shaw and Casemiro, plus Bruno Fernandes a little higher up.

Adding a talented ball-playing goalkeeper is the logical next step, particularly given the Premier League seems to be the home of pressing these days. Eight of the 20 clubs from the top-five leagues with the most high turnovers in 2022/23 were English, and the competition’s average of 16.04 per match was also the most.

See: How Onana overcame tough start at Ajax to become a global star

Onana would certainly fit the bill. He may be someone who plays on the edge, but last season his 93.8 per cent pass accuracy in his own half was only bettered by 12 goalkeepers (minimum 1,000 minutes played) across Europe’s top-five leagues, and just three of those attempted more passes on a per 90-minute basis than his average of 28.8.

De Gea, by comparison, found a team-mate with 88 per cent of passes in his own half from 19.3 passes every 90 minutes.

So not only is Onana used to seeing a lot of the ball, he’s reliable. Given he’s often described as being a risk taker, this might sound surprising, but there’s a real purpose and deliberation to his game.

'He will help squad go higher'

Ten Hag reiterated that Onana's first job is to stop shots, but cited the importance of his abilities with his feet.

"Most important, always for a keeper, is clean sheets and he's not doing that on his own," Ten Hag told the Man Utd website. "Therefore, you need a very good defensive organisation, [it's] quite clear. But also the capabilities of a keeper is [about] keeping the goal clean. So this is the first criterion of a good goalkeeper. 

"But, nowadays, football also demands good playing from the back, out-playing qualities, and that is a quality Andre has. You need both and you need to cover both areas. So, yeah, we're happy, of course.

"I think with his physical presence and also with his personality, he is so keen on winning. He's so, so eager to win trophies and he will help the team and he will help the squad to get to higher levels."

Like a "holding midfielder"

Rarely do you get the impression that Onana is playing a pass without much thought. Only three Serie A goalkeepers registered fewer "hoofs" up the pitch than his one.

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola went as far as to liken Onana to a “holding midfielder” after the UEFA Champions League final, such were the positions he was taking up and some of the passes he picked out.

In fact, it was his pass to Lautaro Martinez in the second half that took more than half the City team out of the equation and eventually led to Romelu Lukaku getting a shot on target.

Guardiola even suggested before the final that Onana’s qualities made Inter the antithesis of United in terms of build-up, telling CBS Sports: “Onana makes it really difficult to deploy a high press against. You cannot press the goalkeeper properly. They are masters at keeping the ball, right up to the attackers.”

“If you look at United, for example, it is long ball. With [Marcus] Rashford and another [forward] to run onto.”

That might be a little reductive, but there’s a hint of truth to it as United tallied more direct attacks (102) and goals from such situations (nine) than any other team in the Premier League last season. Just because Onana plays a lot of passes in his own half doesn’t mean United will lose the ability to play direct.

His four combined chances created and secondary chances created – the pass before the pass that sets up a shot – was second only to Lazio’s Ivan Provedel among Serie A goalkeepers last season, but the latter played 3,412 minutes; Onana featured for only 2,160 minutes in Italy’s top tier.

Varying United's tactics

Of course, chance creation isn’t going to be a major responsibility of Onana’s. But his ability on the ball and use of it could have a frequent impact on how the team attack, or how many chances they craft.

Given how quickly Ten Hag’s side can get from back to front already, Onana’s adventurous passing out from the back could bring further destabilisation to opponents, particularly those who press high.

He played a role in 1.7 open-play shot-ending sequences every 90 minutes in Serie A last season, which was bettered by only two goalkeepers (minimum 650 minutes played) across the top five leagues. Among the same group, only four players averaged more shot-ending build-up involvements each match than his rate of 1.5.

Of course, this requires outfield players capable of continuing to knit attacks together, but United’s 99 build-up attacks were only slightly below Inter’s 101, so there’s plenty to suggest Onana’s talents will be just as well utilised.

High risk, high reward

This all feeds into a wider narrative around Onana’s character and mindset. He’s a front-foot goalkeeper. While Inter's fairly deep defensive line has meant he’s not really been required to sweep, he tallied 35 'keeper sweepings (completing 32) in the 2016/17 Eredivisie for Ajax, which has only been bettered by 10 goalkeepers in a single season across the top-six leagues since.

Of course, he went on to be coached and managed by Ten Hag at Ajax the next season, coinciding with Onana curbing his sweeping tendencies to a significant degree. Nevertheless, there’s no getting away from the fact his style of play and risk taking aren’t for everyone. Some supporters may take a little time to adjust to him.

Let’s not forget, at FIFA World Cup 2022, Onana broke the record for the most touches (26) outside the box by a goalkeeper in a single match at the tournament, with those coming from an open-play total of 46 in the 1-0 defeat to Switzerland.

Ten Hag is already very familiar with Onana’s habits and quirks. His abilities will need to stretch to a goalkeeper’s bread and butter, though.

Ten Hag’s system almost requires United to concede a lot of shots because that encouragement results in the opposition leaving more space to be exploited at the other end. As such they faced 481 shots last season, fewer than only Tottenham Hotspur (520), Fulham (505) and Brentford (559) among those who finished in the top half.

De Gea remains a very able goalkeeper when it comes to pure shot-stopping, although his 69.9 per cent save percentage in the league last season was inferior to Onana’s 71.8 per cent. The latter also led everyone in the Champions League for "goals prevented", keeping out 7.8 (excluding own goals) according to Opta’s Expected Goals On Target conceded (xGOT) metric, although he let in 2.5 more than he should have in Serie A.

Onana isn’t perfect, but is any goalkeeper? Even Ederson conceded 4.7 goals more than expected in the league last season, according to the same model, yet he’s still lauded as being among the best and probably the benchmark for ball-playing goalkeepers.

We also have to acknowledge Onana has been playing in leagues that are regarded as less physical than the Premier League, especially in terms of the modern-day fascination with pressing. Joining United, it’s obviously not a given that he’ll be a success.

His adaptation will be key. How quickly he adjusts to the change in pressing intensity will be a significant factor during the early months, but if all goes smoothly, there’s every reason to expect Onana can be a hugely important cog in Ten Hag’s machine.

United are finally moving with the times; perhaps the goalkeeper will at long last be utilised to maximum effect at Old Trafford.

This article originates from Opta Analyst.