Andre Onana: Biography, Nationality, Family, Achievements, Style of Play, Errors And Controversies

Andre Onana: Biography, Nationality, Family, Achievements, Style of Play, Errors And Controversies. Photos: Imago

Andre Onana: Biography, Nationality, Family, Achievements, Style of Play, Errors And Controversies

Joel Omotto 16:44 - 19.04.2025

Pulse Sports highlights everything you need to know about Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana known for his controversies on and off the pitch.

Andre Onana is a prominent footballer who plays for Manchester United, one of the most popular clubs in the world.

Onana has risen to prominence in the last two years since signing for the Premier League club where every performance is highly scrutinised.

While he has made some key saves, Andre Onana has become more famous for his high-profile errors which have made him a subject of criticism and ridicule from certain quarters.

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Andre Onana Biography

Manchester United. Ruben Amorim. Europa League. Manchester United vs Lyon.
Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim celebrates comeback against Lyon with goalkeeper Andre Onana. (Credit: Imago).

Andre Onana is a Cameroonian goalkeeper who moved to Europe at the tender age of 14 and played for some of the world’s top teams being Barcelona, Ajax Amsterdam, Inter Milan and now Manchester United.

He was born in Nkol Ngok, southwest of Yaounde, on April 2, 1998 and started his football journey at the Samuel Eto’o Academy back home in Cameroon.

At the age of 14, Andre Onana moved to Spain in 2010 and joined La Liga giants Barcelona and was loaned out to the youth team of lower league side Cornella for the 2012-13 season given he was under 18 and a non-EU citizen.

The following season, he was loaned out to Vista Alegre but in January 2015, Andre Onana had attracted the interest of Dutch giants Ajax, who signed him.

Ajax had seen the potential in the young goalkeeper and decided to take a chance on him, although he had to start at their second-string team Jong Ajax in the 2015-26 season, before getting promoted to the senior side the following season.

Andre Onana signed a new contract at Ajax in 2017 and went on to become a key member of the team as he was the first-choice goalkeeper under coach Erik ten Hag, who enjoyed a successful five-year spell at Ajax.

In total, Andre Onana made 214 appearances for Ajax Amsterdam and won six trophies, including three league titles, but a drug ban in February 2021 saw him suspended for the entire season.

When his ban ended, Andre Onana moved to Italian side Inter Milan for the 2022-23 season and performed well, winning two trophies and reaching the Champions League final, attracting the interest of Manchester United.

Andre Onana joined Manchester United in July 2023 for £43.8 million, potentially rising to £47 million with add-ons, and he signed a five-year contract with the Premier League club, reuniting with his former Ajax coach Erik ten Hag, who would later leave in October 2024, after more than two years at Old Trafford.

Andre Onana’s Nationality

Andre Onana on duty with Cameroon. (Photo Credit: x)

Andre Onana comes from Cameroon and he is a full international who has played for the Indomitable Lions at the 2021 and 2023 Africa Cup of Nations as well as the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

He made his Cameroon debut in a friendly match against Gabon in September 2016, having received his first call-up in a friendly match against France in May that year, although he did not play.

Andre Onana’s Family

Andre Onana and his wife Melanie Kamayou | Credit: Instagram

Andre Onana comes from a family that has produced top goalkeepers for Cameroon as his cousin Fabrice Ondoa has played for the Indomitable Lions and was the man between the posts when they won the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations.

Andre Onana is married to French-born Cameroonian model, entrepreneur, philanthropist and model Melanie Kamayou and they have one child.

What Has Andre Onana Achieved?

Andre Onana has won trophies everywnere he has played. | Imago

Andre Onana has experienced success throughout his football career as he has won trophies for every club he represented at senior level.

Andre Onana won three Eredivisie titles with Ajax (2018-19, 2020-21, 2021-22), two KNVB Cups (2018-19, 2020-21) and the Johan Cruyff Shield in 2019 while at Inter Milan, he lifted the Coppa Italia and Supercoppa Italiana before helping Manchester United to FA Cup glory in 2023-24.

Andre Onana’s Style of Play

Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana is revered for his ball-playing abilities. | Imago

Andre Onana is one of the world’s top sweeper-keepers who is known to take great risks with the ball at his feet.

His ability to play out from the back was cited as the main reason for his signing by Ten Hag, who was looking for a goalkeeper able to start attacks from the back, help in build-ups and improve their distribution.

Andre Onana has, however, not really displayed these qualities in a United shirt where his high-profile errors have marked his two-year stint.

Andre Onana’s Errors

Andre Onana. Manchester United.
Andre Onana has made many high-profile mistakes. (Credit: Imago).

Andre Onana has made a number of key errors leading to goals during his spell at Manchester United, both in the Premier League and European competitions.

Some of his costly mistakes include the 2024-25 Europa League quarter-final first leg against Lyon, when he failed to deal with two easy shots as the French side secured a 2-2 draw, while in the 2023-24 Champions League, he was the main reason United failed to get out of their group.

Onana made mistakes in group matches against Bayern Munich and Galatasaray while in the Premier League, he has let in easy goals against Brighton, Nottingham Forest, Wolves and Sheffield United among others.

Andre Onana’s Controversies

Nemanja Matic and Andre Onana had a war of words. Photos/Imago

Andre Onana has also courted controversy throughout his career at both club and national team level.

In February 2021 while playing for Ajax, Onana was handed a 12-month ban for testing positive for banned substance Furosemide, although he claimed he had taken his wife’s medicine by mistake.

He appealed the ban and it was reduced to nine months but it spelt the end of his time at Ajax as he left as a free agent in June 2022.

For Cameroon, Andre Onana was sent home from the team’s 2022 World Cup camp after falling out with the then coach Rigobert Song.

Onana was reportedly kicked out for disciplinary reasons after he refused to align with the coach’s tactical instructions and he would react by retiring from international football before later rescinding his decision.

In April 2025, Andre Onana was involved in a war of words with Lyon midfielder Nemanja Matic, who described him as the “worst goalkeeper in United history” while the Cameroon international fired back by saying he had won trophies with the Red Devils, something the Serbian, who played for five years at the Premier League club, could not achieve.

Andre Onana Social Media

Andre Onana has a huge social media following with 2.2 million Instagram followers, 369k on X (Formerly Twitter) and 957k on Facebook.