Erik ten Hag says he is not concerned by the prospect of losing Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana to the Africa Cup of Nations in January and February.
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Though yet to be confirmed, it seems very likely that Onana will be called up to Cameroon’s squad for the tournament.
This means he could miss up to six games should his country reach the final on 11th February, including huge clashes against Tottenham and Aston Villa.
The keeper has played every single minute of United’s season so far, but his £47million move from Inter Milan last summer has not been going to plan.
The 27-year-old has made numerous mistakes, especially in the Champions League which contributed to the Red Devils being embarrassingly dumped out of Europe.
That said, there are question marks over the capabilities of his No.2 Altay Bayindir who is yet to make his debut since moving to Old Trafford last summer from Fenerbahce.
Veteran Tom Heaton is also available, but while he starred for Burnley in the past and has much experience, the 37-year-old’s best days are surely behind him.
But Ten Hag has no such fears, addressing the matter in his pre-match press conference ahead of United’s trip to West Ham on Saturday.
‘When he [Onana] goes there [AFCON], we have a strong group of keepers with Bayindir and Tom Heaton so we are comfortable,’ the manager said.
‘Of course, we hope Andre is available as much as possible, but if not we have two good keepers who can replace him.’
As mentioned, it is not a certainty that Onana will go to AFCON as he previously quit international duty following a fall out with Cameroon boss Rigobert Song at the 2022 World Cup.
He returned to the fold earlier this year, but there are some rumours that he doesn’t want to take part in the tournament over fears that he could lose his place in United’s starting XI.
The deadline for squads for the tournament in the Ivory Coast to be submitted is 3rd January, and under FIFA rules players called up are compelled to report for duty.
Ten Hag went onto say that United and Onana are still in talks ahead of Cameroon’s squad announcement, adding: ‘If they call him up, you know the regulations.’
Other United players who could also go to AFCON are Sofyan Amrabat (Morocco), Amad Diallo (Ivory Coast) and Hannibal Mejbri (Tunisia).
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