Onana reluctant to play at AFCON
After a rocky start to his career at Old Trafford, André Onana is hesitant to leave Manchester United to play for Cameroon at the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in January, according to Newsmen.
After a disagreement with head coach Rigobert Song, Onana stepped down from international football after the World Cup in Qatar. Under pressure from the government and the Cameroon Football Association, he consented to return for the final AFCON qualifier against Burundi in September.
Cameroon’s 3-0 victory secured their spot in the competition, which begins on January 13 in the Ivory Coast. Onana, on the other hand, is hesitant to participate because it would mean missing a month of the Premier League season, and his objective, according to a source close to the player, is to focus on his new club.
Onana is especially eager to stay at Old Trafford after a difficult start to his first season, which included a string of costly errors, and wants to demonstrate his dedication to United.
He made a terrible error in the 4-3 loss to Bayern Munich in September and was also responsible for the incident that saw Casemiro sent off in Tuesday’s 3-2 loss at Galatasaray.
During the course of his £47.3 million (($57.37m) move from Inter, Onana informed Ten Hag and United officials that he had no aspirations to return to the Cameroon squad. According to Newsmen, the Dutchman is sympathetic to the goalkeeper’s plight and will not interfere with his decision.
Onana has been called up to the Cameroon squad for games against Russia and Senegal during the October international break, but a source informed ESPN that he will hold additional meetings with officials before committing to play at AFCON.