Sir Alex Ferguson once said that a great goalkeeper is worth 15 points throughout a season.
Manchester United have a great shotstopper with Andre Onana and his double save in the second half against Crystal Palace on Saturday evening was a truly world-class moment.
The spring and strong left hand to save Eddie Nketiah’s shot from the edge of the box. The athleticism and quality to instinctively get up from the ground and make another save.
It all happened so quickly in real-time and it appeared like Ismaïla Sarr had fired the follow-up wide, but the replays in the press box confirmed Onana had somehow risen from the deck to make an exceptional double save and that intervention ensured the points were shared.
Naturally, the players looked deflated not to have won the match as they stood and waited to leave Selhurst Park after the final whistle – the mixed zone where journalists stand is opposite the away dressing room – but it could have been worse if Onana hadn’t made his double save.
“We are disappointed,” said Onana to a handful of journalists 20 minutes after the game. “We are such a big club and everywhere we go we have the ambition to win. I think we’re better than them, we had the best chances in the game and now we have to move on stay positive.”
Onana modestly admitted his double save was “an important moment” when it was said to him that it was a world-class intervention and he continued: “But the most important thing was the victory because we didn’t win today, so it’s tough after having so many chances.
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