Andre Onana has explained why he let rip at Harry Maguire during Manchester United’s 3-2 pre-season defeat to Borussia Dortmund.
In what was a frustrating match for Erik ten Hag’s men in Las Vegas, tempers threatened to spill over after new goalkeeper Onana was captured berating former club captain Maguire during the friendly.
Onana was introduced as a substitute in the showdown, and quickly set to work stamping his authority on his team-mates, as he screamed at Maguire for ceding possession and allowing Sebastien Haller through on goal.
A loose pass from Maguire allowed BVB to break with swiftness and intent, calling Onana into action early on upon just being introduced onto the field. Following the attack, Ten Hag’s new No. 1 went straight to Maguire with an explosive rant.
Explaining his animated outburst, Onana now insists it’s because he has big “demands” from his defenders if they are to trust one another when playing out from the back.
It took Andre Onana two matches to realise Harry Maguire is a liability. pic.twitter.com/FywSceISIs
— ? (@_UtdRyan_) July 31, 2023
He said in the aftermath: “I demand a lot of my team-mates because also they demand a lot, they trust in me.
“They play a lot of balls back to me, so I have to give them confidence and I want my players to give them to me to give me confidence.
“I demand [from] them a lot and I will demand from them a lot because they are great players. Now, for me, it’s a big honour to play with these defenders.”
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It has been a difficult summer for Maguire so far, with Ten Hag stripping him of his captaincy, and all but confirming his place in Man Utd’s defensive food chain — but Onana has backed the defender to come through his rough patch.
Onana said: “I try to talk to them a lot because I know he’s [Maguire] a good player, he is one of the captains of the the team.
“That’s big and he is good with the ball, so I would demand [from] him a lot and he’s a good, great guy.
“I have a good relationship with him. I have to be and he has to be ready and I spoke with him because when I’m in the goal, I demand to everyone a lot.
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“I will start with myself because I think we are in this together and mistakes will come. We don’t have to be afraid to make mistakes because this is part of life and we learn from the mistakes.
“So we have to be very critical with ourselves. And if we want to win prizes, we have to demand a lot. And for me, it’s a big honour to be here and I’m very happy to work with these guys, Harry is a top guy and a fantastic player. We will move on.”