“It’s always a good choice” - Bruno Fernandes joined by 3 teammates as Manchester United stars catch up with David de Gea
Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes has posted a snap of himself and fellow teammates catching up with the Red Devils former goalkeeper David de Gea.
The Portuguese superstar uploaded a picture of the catch-up with De Gea along with his teammates Raphael Varane, Victor Lindelof, and Tom Heaton on his Instagram account. He captioned it:
"(Tea) and friends it’s always a good choice."
De Gea, 32, left Manchester United in the summer after spending 12 years with the Premier League giants. He made 545 appearances for the Red Devils, keeping 190 clean sheets.
However, the Spaniard was not able to convince Erik ten Hag to hand him a new contract which expired in the summer. He's currently without a club since departing Old Trafford.
Fernandes made his feelings clear over De Gea's departure, insisting his club should have shown him more respect. He posted on Instagram:
"You know what I think about you and how much I will miss you bro. You deserved to say goodbye at the stadium with all the fans cheering you for all the beautiful memories. You made history at the club and your name will not be forgotten, and no one can take that away from you."
Manchester United signed Andre Onana as De Gea's replacement but the Cameroonian goalkeeper has failed to impress. He's kept three clean sheets in 12 games across competitions but has made some expensive errors.
Erik ten Hag gives his take on Andre Onana's shaky start at Manchester United since replacing De Gea
Onana joined the Red Devils from Inter Milan in a £47.2 million deal in the summer. The Cameroon international previously played under Ten Hag at Ajax and is regarded as one of the best ball-playing shot-stoppers in Europe.
However, the 27-year-old has made an erratic start to his Manchester United career. He fumbled Leroy Sane's opener in a 4-3 defeat to Bayern Munich in the UEFA Champions League (September 20).
Onana then played a tame pass out from the back that led to Casemiro being sent off in a 3-2 loss to Galatasaray at Old Trafford (October 3). There are question marks over the former Barcelona academy graduate being the right replacement for De Gea.
Ten Hag insists that Onana knows he's not been good enough for United thus far. He said (via The Evening Standard):
"He knows [he's not been good enough], we know, he will do much better."
However, the Manchester United boss then compared Onana with De Gea and the legendary Peter Schmeichel alluding to their slow starts in the Premier League:
"As with every player who's coming into the Premier League, you need an integration period but he has to step up. Big United keepers like Peter Schmeichel and David De Gea started [slowly] and Andre knows that it is good to know a little bit from history."
Onana is a nominee for the 2023 Ballon d'Or award following a fine season at Inter. He kept 19 clean sheets in 41 games across competitions, impressing in a 2-1 Coppa Italia final win against Fiorentina.