Ruben Amorim delivers 'most important' message to under-fire Man Utd star ahead of Newcastle United visit

Newcastle United will hope to take advantage of the questionable form of Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana when the two sides meet at St James Park this weekend.

The Cameroon international was at the heart of a bizarre war of words with former Red Devils midfielder Nemanja Matic as Ruben Amorim’s side prepared for the first leg of the Europa League quarter-final tie with Ligue 1 club Lyon. Onana had suggested the 13-time Premier League champions were ‘way better’ than their hosts as his side looked to take another step towards a final that will be held in Athletic Bilbao’s San Mames stadium next month. The comments provoked a fierce retort from Lyon star Matic as he hit out of Onana and suggested the current Red Devils stopper was falling short of his predecessors at Old Trafford.

What did Nemanja Matic say about Man Utd goalkeeper Andre Onana?

"If you are one of the worst keepers in Manchester United history, you need to take care. If David de Gea, Peter Schmeichel or Edwin van der Sar said that, I would question myself. But if, statistically, you are one of the worst goalkeepers in Manchester United's modern history, he needs to show that before he says."

Onana actually hit back ahead of the game via his social media accounts by stating he would ‘never be disrespectful to another club’ - but having a cheeky dig at Matic by saying ‘At least I’ve lifted trophies with the greatest club in the world. Some can’t say the same.’

What happened to Andre Onana during Man Utd’s draw with Lyon?

It seemed almost inevitable Onana would have some sort of say in Thursday night’s Europa League tie - and that came to pass as the former Ajax and Inter goalkeeper was criticised for his part in both of Lyon’s goals in their 2-2 draw with the Red Devils. The French side took the lead on 25 minutes as the goalkeeper failed to get a strong enough hand on a Thiago Almada free-kick before reported Newcastle target Rayan Cherki hit an injury-time equaliser after Onana failed to hold Georges Mikautadze's shot.

What has Ruben Amorim said about Man Utd goalkeeper Andre Onana?

Unsurprisingly, Red Devils head coach Ruben Amorim stood up for his current first-choice goalkeeper and stressed Onana retains his full confidence despite his high-profile errors in Thursday night’s draw and the criticism he has received in recent weeks.

Speaking after Thursday night’s draw in France: "If you look at the season I've made more mistakes than them during these last games and during these last months. There's nothing I can say to Andre in this moment that will help him, so the most important thing is to be natural and then when the time comes I will choose the best XI to play. But I'm really confident in Andre. We continue to do the same thing. Training, seeing the games, trying to choose the best eleven to win every match."

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