Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana reportedly had to be calmed down by former Senegal and Liverpool striker El Hadji Diouf after he was left out of Cameroon’s squad for their opening Africa Cup of Nations match. The Indomitable Lions drew 1-1 with 10-men Guinea on Monday with their second-choice stopper between the posts.
Fabrice Ondoa deputised for Onana, who was said to be upset after he had flown to the match in a private jet shortly after playing 90 minutes in United’s 2-2 draw with Tottenham on Sunday. The 27-year-old had expected to play in his country’s opening match, but was left out of the squad entirely by boss Rigobert Song.
He had a tumultuous 5,000-mile-long journey to arrive in Ivory Coast but he was spotted alongside Diouf, who had to calm the goalkeeper down, before local reports claimed that Onana shouted: “If I wasn’t going to play or make the team, then why did I come here on a private jet?”
Onana had opted to stay in Manchester and delay joining up with the national team so missed out on their preparations for the competition. He instead played against Spurs before immediately leaving for Liverpool John Lennon Airport to catch a late flight to Ivory Coast.
However, poor weather conditions meant that Onana was unable to land in Yamoussoukro, where Cameroon were playing their match with Guinea, and instead had to fly to Abidjan where he was driven the final leg of his journey to the Stade Charles Konan Banny.
He arrived three hours before kick-off but that was not enough time for Song to determine that Onana was ready to be named in the squad. The United goalkeeper was aware that Ondoa would start against Guinea, but had expected to be named on the bench.
Song played down the decision and insisted that Onana was not going to be involved after landing in Ivory Coast during the early hours of the morning. “It’s logical, he arrived at 4 o’clock in the morning. How do you want him to play?” Song said. “He’s part of the group.”
