David de Gea spent 12 years at Manchester United before leaving them as a free agent in the summer.
His exit saw the Red Devils bring in André Onana from Inter Milan in the last window and the 27-year-old has been the first-choice goalkeeper under Erik ten Hag this season.
Onana’s personal goalkeeping coach Yvan Castillo gave an interview to Sportitalia and one of the topics discussed was his move to Manchester United.
The Cameroonian arrived at the San Siro as a free agent in 2022 and was one of the key players in the Inter side that made it to the Champions League final last season. He was bonding well with the Serie A side and their supporters before joining the Premier League side.
“André has always done well everywhere, he believes that Inter and the city of Milan will always be his home,” he said.
“Logically, when you receive a call like the one from Manchester United, to play in the Premier League and continue at the highest level, you get excited. But I repeat that he is grateful and always follows with affection the teams he played for, Barcelona, Ajax and Inter.”
The former Ajax man’s start to his Manchester United career has been mixed and, he’s kept four clean sheets and conceded 20 goals from 13 games. He also made mistakes in the Champions League this season and his overall form has been subject to criticism.
“André is a winner with a very strong character. The first thing he had in mind was to work harder,” Castillo explained.
When asked if anything has changed with Onana’s training after being subjected to criticism and pressure, his personal coach added: “He’s a great professional and from the first moment he focused on how to continue to improve by training even harder.”
Earlier this week, the stopper saved a penalty in injury time against FC Copenhagen and that was vital in helping Manchester United collect three points in the European tie.
“On Tuesday we saw the André we are used to, decisive for his team, in his best version. He has been working very hard for many years, he is prepared for this type of match in such a demanding competition like this,” Castillo said.
