Andre Onana, Emiliano Martinez and Manchester United's goalkeeping conundrum

New York Times

2 days ago

When Manchester United signed Andre Onana in 2023, it was not just a change of goalkeeper. It was a philosophical pivot.
Out went David de Gea's reactive, shot-stopping style and in came someone who supposedly embodied the ideals of the modern game. Onana was not just comfortable with the ball at his feet — he demanded it. He was brought in to be the foundation of United's build-up play, capable of turning pressure into progression.
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Two seasons on, the theory has yet to deliver. The 29-year-old has shown flashes of brilliance, but he has also looked exposed in a team that lacks structure.
The Cameroon international had an inauspicious introduction. In a pre-season game in August 2023, a slack pass from Diogo Dalot was seized upon by Lens striker Florian Sotoca, who spotted Onana standing on the edge of his area and promptly lobbed him for the opener.
Erik ten Hag knew Onana liked to be adventurous, but United's head coach at the time believed his risky style paled in comparison to the reward his progressive passing would yield.
Two seasons and a manager change later, Onana has enjoyed streaks of good form, but also moments of difficulty. Errors have crept in. Confidence has wavered. What was a bold appointment in the summer of 2023 now raises questions.
Is Onana still the right fit for this team? And is there a goalkeeper who can handle the unique pressures of Manchester United?
One name linked is Emiliano Martinez, the Aston Villa and Argentina goalkeeper. As reported in the DealSheet on Tuesday, United have been in touch with his representatives since the start of the year, but Villa are yet to receive any direct contact.
So, how does Martinez compare to United's current first-choice goalkeeper?
Where Onana is high risk and high reward, Martinez is no-nonsense. Where Onana looks to dictate the tempo, Martinez looks to control the chaos. For a team as tactically fluid and emotionally fragile as United, that difference matters more than ever.
Onana is a specialist. His qualities — composure, adventurous passing, brave positioning — are tailored for teams that dominate possession and use the goalkeeper to help build attacks from the back. At Ajax, Onana was a natural fit under Ten Hag. At Inter, he thrived in a system that allowed him to play high and use the ball frequently, knowing the team's structure could protect him in the event of a misstep.
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United have failed to offer that stability. The defensive line has often been unsettled, and Lisandro Martinez's prolonged injury absences have robbed Onana of his best passing option. Midfield turnover is high and the press is inconsistent. Onana's game is built around risk-taking and technical freedom but in that volatile environment, his skills feel less like a system-enhancer and more like an unnecessary stretch goal. His traits do not disappear, but their utility diminishes.
Martinez requires less from the system to perform at a high level. He's a more traditional goalkeeper: commanding in his box, consistent in decision-making, pragmatic in possession. The 32-year-old will not perform Cruyff turns on the edge of the penalty area, nor will he attempt to break the lines with a low, arrowed pass into central midfield.
He is a known quantity, and his shot-stopping engenders confidence. Qualities that are sometimes difficult to measure, but easy to feel. His command of the six-yard box is exemplary. His composure when claiming high balls is excellent. Since his first season in the Premier League with Villa in 2020-21, he has claimed more crosses than any other goalkeeper (237). Alongside Arsenal's David Raya, he is among the best in the league when claiming high balls.
There's also the psychological aspect. Martinez's performances for Argentina during their Copa America and World Cup triumphs were not just defined by big saves, but by his ability to own the moment. He has become notorious for his approach to penalty shootouts and has won multiple individual awards, including the last two Yashin Trophies for the world's best goalkeeper.
However, as many Villa fans will attest, there is a difference between Martinez for his national team and Martinez in the Premier League. Rival fans may joke that he saves his more pronounced errors for non-televised matches, but the most recent season saw noticeable slip-ups at crucial moments.
'I am not having a good year in that respect,' Martinez told ESPN Argentina in December 2024 when asked about Villa's dearth of clean sheets. 'But the important thing is to win and to qualify for the Champions League again next season.'
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Villa failed to secure Champions League football after losing 2-0 against United on the final day of the season, with Martinez receiving a red card after fouling Rasmus Hojlund outside the penalty area.
Martinez is not a perfect goalkeeper. Neither is Onana. Statistics cannot quantify every layer and nuance of the position, but the difference in shot-stopping output between the two is not vast. Martinez has faced fewer shots than Onana since the beginning of the 2023-24 season and the data suggests he has prevented more goals.
Yet Onana has shown some shot-stopping quality across the last two seasons. The difference between his goals conceded and his 'expected goals on target' (xGOT, a measure of how many goals an average goalkeeper would concede when facing the same shots) is reasonable. He finished the 2024-25 season with one more Premier League clean sheet (nine) than Martinez.
There is more to preventing goals than making saves.
A goalkeeper can reduce the need to make a save with a well-directed shout to the defenders in front of him. Both men take different approaches to their shot-stopping styles, and yield slightly different results. Martinez does not hesitate when attempting a save.
When he believes the ball is his, he claims it with authority. Shots fired high and to the corners can be saved. Attackers have to work hard to beat him, often aiming low before Martinez's feet are set.
Onana is not a one-on-one goalkeeper to the same level as Martinez, but is usually strong when protecting the middle of his goal.
Onana has, however, regularly parried powerful shots back into the six-yard box, where opposition players can nip in and score a rebound. It is an issue that can be mitigated (but not eliminated) with a better defensive structure. Onana cannot catch every shot or push everything out of play. There will be moments when his centre-backs have to retreat to help.
The areas both goalkeepers aim for when passing say as much about their teams as their own technical ability.
Martinez is a solid distributor, frequently directing his goal kicks into central midfield where Unai Emery's well-balanced unit can fight for first contact and second balls.
His open play is measured, starting Villa's well-rehearsed build-up patterns.
Onana has been kicking long and to his left, hoping to get the ball to the more dangerous side of United's attack.
His open-play passes are varied and sometimes scattered. Uneven squad composition and application have meant neither Ten Hag nor Amorim has maximised his greatest skills. Onana is a goalkeeping solution to a non-urgent problem in United's list of concerns.
Choosing between Onana and Martinez comes down to where United are in their evolution. This isn't a fully formed possession team with a refined press and consistent tactical identity. It is a team under construction, prone to structural lapses and unforced errors.
In that context, a goalkeeper who asks less of the system and offers more in terms of reliability makes a lot of sense. Martinez does not elevate your possession game, but he does not invite questions of the risk/reward dynamic that can unnerve this nervy United team. Is that worth a transfer move in a summer where United need reinforcements at centre-forward, central midfield and maybe even wing-back? All while balancing a restricted budget without the allure of European football?
This is not a question of who is more talented. Only a handful of goalkeepers have Onana's technical skill set but talent only translates when it aligns with the team's needs. Right now, United's needs are more fundamental than tactical.
They need a steadying presence before an ambitious progressive passer. Martinez's ceiling may not be as high in a tactical sense, but his floor is more stable. Onana could return to that base level after a summer of rest, recuperation and recalibration for the 2025-26 season.
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In another version of United — one with a coherent press, consistent defenders, and controlled midfield play — Onana could be the better fit. But in this version? In the real, current United? Martinez — or a more confident version of Onana playing a much simpler version of his own game — looks like the safer option.
United need someone who can help calm the storm. There are no guarantees with goalkeepers, only trust gradually earned over time, and a commitment to overcome setbacks when they arrive.
(Top photos: Getty Images)