Onana returns to Trabzonspor on loan as United block any path back for £43m outcast

Andre Onana has rejoined Trabzonspor on loan for a second consecutive season, Manchester United confirmed, with the £43m goalkeeper once again departing Old Trafford rather than competing for a place in the squad.

The Cameroon international made 33 appearances for the Turkish club last season and has agreed a fresh deal to return, despite a change of management at United following Michael Carrick’s appointment as head coach. United issued a brief statement wishing Onana “the best of luck for the campaign ahead.”

The move means United will again forgo any transfer fee for a player signed from Inter Milan in 2023, though Trabzonspor will cover Onana’s entire wages — which have risen following United’s qualification for the Champions League — as well as paying an undisclosed loan fee.

Onana lost his starting place at the beginning of last season when then-head coach Ruben Amorim dropped him from the first team. His last appearance for the club came in a Carabao Cup defeat to League Two Grimsby last August. Despite Amorim’s departure and Carrick’s arrival, no way back has materialised for the 29-year-old.

In Onana’s absence, 2025 signing Senne Lammens has established himself as United’s first-choice goalkeeper. The club opted not to use Onana even as a deputy to the Belgian, and while they may pursue another goalkeeper this summer, the decision to loan him out again signals his standing at the club.

Onana was originally brought to United by Erik ten Hag, his former manager at Ajax, but his two seasons in the United goal were marked by a series of high-profile errors that eroded confidence in him. He still has two years remaining on his contract.

Despite the difficult circumstances of his departure, Onana enjoyed a productive spell in Turkey last season, helping Trabzonspor finish third in the Super Lig and claim the Turkish Cup.