Man Utd star brutally accused of ‘never wanting to be there’ as Old Trafford career now ‘over’

Former Manchester United midfielder Gordon Strachan believes the career of an Old Trafford star who still has three years left on his contract is now ‘over’, just days after Sir Alex Ferguson heaped praise on his replacement.

Despite excelling at both Ajax and Inter Milan, Andre Onana largely struggled to live up to the billing at Old Trafford after joining in a £47.2million deal back in the summer of 2023.

After two largely disappointing seasons and several high-profile mistakes, the Cameroon international lost his place as Ruben Amorim’s first-choice shot-stopper.

The 29-year-old was left out of Man Utd‘s opening three Premier League games before being allowed to move to Turkish side Trabzonspor on loan for the rest of the campaign.

That prompted Man Utd to move for Senne Lammens in an initial £18.1m deal from Belgian side Royal Antwerp on the final day of the summer transfer window, and the 23-year-old has not looked back since breaking into the side – even earning praise from legendary Old Trafford boss Ferguson.

In terms of Onana‘s future, though, Trabzonspor do not have an option to sign the player on a permanent transfer, and the keeper is due to return to Old Trafford next summer.

However, Strachan cannot see how Onana can ever force his way past Lammens and that his time in Manchester is now up.

“I think Andre Onana has played his last game for Manchester United,” the Scot told Esports News.

“At United you must have a presence in goal – whether it’s physical, attitude, or character, you have to be a presence. I don’t think he had that when he played for the club.

“A big problem for me is that I’m not sure Onana really wanted to be at Old Trafford. He looked like he’d rather be somewhere else and that might be what he needs to start enjoying his football again.

“At no point did I think he was enjoying playing football for United. I’d be shocked if I saw him play again for the club. I think his United career is over in that respect.”

DON’T MISS ➡️ Ranking all 25 midfielders Man Utd have been linked with and why Premier League star should be No. 1 target

Romano confirms likely Onana exit

Even though Onana will return to Old Trafford at the end of the season, reputed transfer insider Fabrizio Romano has confirmed that United will look to move him on permanently.

“In this case [with Onana], compared to Hojland and Rashford there is no buy option clause included in the deal,” Romano recently said on his YouTube channel.

“Onana will officially return to United at the beginning of the summer transfer window 2026, but my understanding is United are super with Senne Lammens.

“In this moment I don’t think Onana will be part of Manchester United’s plans. Probably the idea would be to part ways, to find a solution for Onana, to explore the market.”

Latest Man Utd news: Karim Adeyemi chase; Mainoo future update

First up, despite holding talks with Manchester United over a possible move to Old Trafford in 2026, the agent of Karim Adeyemi has offered the Borussia Dortmund winger to Real Madrid, according to a report, but the response of Los Blancos will delight the Red Devils as well as Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta.

Elsewhere, United are reportedly leading the race to sign in-demand AZ Alkmaar midfielder Kees Smit, who has also been linked with Liverpool, and the timeline for his potential signing has now been revealed.

And finally, the Red Devils will consider potential contingency plans ahead of an anticipated transfer request from Kobbie Mainoo, TEAMtalk understands, and his potential exit could have huge ramifications for their January window.