Manchester United midfielder Donny Van De Beek has praised his club’s decision to sign Cameroonian goalkeeper André Onana.
The 26-year-old midfielder is getting a run of games in Manchester United’s pre-season tour as Erik ten Hag evaluates his readiness and adaptability to the current Red Devils squad. His time at the club since his £40 million move from The Netherlands has been largely bust and many believe he may be on his way out in the ongoing summer transfer window.
While his future is up for debate, he is close to a reunion with his former AFC Ajax teammate Onana, with whom he won multiple Dutch Eredivisie titles and had that brilliant run to the 2019 UEFA Champions League semi-finals.
Onana, meanwhile, is joining up with United after making it to the final of the Champions League with Inter Milan last season, where only a goal separated him and European glory. Both could be playing together under the manager who made them relevant and Van De Beek is excited about the prospect.
The Netherlands international has called his former teammate a ‘great goalkeeper’ and has praised United’s decision to sign him.
After several weeks of negotiations, United and Inter agreed on a £47 million transfer fee for the Cameroonian. Onana was in Manchester on Wednesday to finalise his move after which he will join up with his new teammates in the United States of America for the rest of their pre-season tour.
Van De Beek, who scored in United’s pre-season game against Olympique Lyonnais, said of the move: “Yeah, he’s a great goalkeeper.
“I played with him for many years, great personality, he’s good with his feet, good on the line, my expectations are high for André.
“He’s a great person as well, I still speak with him sometimes, he’s a top-class goalie.”
The Dutch midfielder was also asked about his thoughts towards being teammates with Mason Mount for the foreseeable future.
The former Chelsea man is United’s first signing of the window. He has spent two weeks with his new teammates and Van De Beek seems impressed by him. “Yeah, really good,” Van de Beek said of Mount’s signing.
“Mason, I’ve played against him in the past, so I’ve known him for a long time already as a player.
“He’s a great player and a great person as well, it’s nice.”
Journalists also asked him about his future with the Red Devils. Van De Beek, who has made only 36 appearances in all competitions for the Red Devils in three seasons due to management decisions and long spells on the sidelines, said: “For now, it’s hard to say where my future is. I’ve come back now after injury and I’m fit now, so I play my first minutes after training for a few weeks, so I try to push as hard as possible.
“Every day [something] can happen, so it’s hard to say now where my future will be. In football you never know, especially with me, so let’s see what happens.”
