ManUre v Everton (FA Cup)

hairy cataract wrote:

Amen to all of that, and my heart goes out to your mate.  

Onana is a weird one.  He gives the ball away all the time, but is brilliant at getting it back.  I'm not sure if that makes him a good player or not.  I remember watching his YouTube reel and thinking that he also had a good eye for a devastating pass through the lines, but we've seen none of that.  I'd like him to see him getting into the top third of the pitch more often.  And I also have no idea why we never throw him up top for the last fifteen when we're losing.  I mean, he's nearly eight feet tall, just lob a few crosses in at him.  Maybe he doesn't know how to head the ball?

The difference between Onana and some of his teammates, including Gueye (who I thought was generally decent last night) is that more and more, Onana is giving the ball away by trying to make something happen, but where the pass just doesn't come off. I do think he's trying to do that although, you're right, he's probably still pinging it laterally at times when a forward pass is on.

Others give the ball away either because they're just sloppy, or shite. And we don't know whether he's not getting forward more due to manager instructions or not.

I feel like Onana is settling down now and is on top of the pace of the English game. He'll only get better and better from here. The question, of course, is whether we'll be able to keep him for long enough to see his best days in a blue shirt. At the moment he feels like another Dacourt or Matterazzi - one and done.