Manchester United Welcomes Back Onana And Zirkzee For Premier League Opener Against Arsenal

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Manchester United have announced that Andre Onana and Joshua Zirkzee are back in training. This comes as they gear up for their Premier League opener against Arsenal. Both players missed pre-season due to injuries, with Zirkzee sidelined since April and Onana suffering a hamstring injury in July. The club confirmed on Monday that both are now training fully with Ruben Amorim's squad.

Onana faced a challenging 2024-25 season, making three errors that led to goals in the Premier League. Only three other goalkeepers made more mistakes than him. Despite this, he excelled in shot-stopping, conceding 40 goals from shots with an expected goals on target (xGoT) value of 41.3, effectively preventing 1.3 goals.

There were rumours of Onana leaving earlier in the transfer window due to his performance issues. Manchester United were linked with Emiliano Martinez from Aston Villa and Gianluigi Donnarumma from Paris Saint-Germain as potential replacements. However, Onana remains the first-choice goalkeeper for now.

Zirkzee played 31 out of 32 matches under Amorim before his injury during a match against Newcastle United. He scored six goals during this period, second only to captain Bruno Fernandes. Despite his return, new signings Matheus Cunha, Bryan Mbeumo, and Benjamin Sesko might see him starting the season on the bench.

The team is preparing to host Arsenal on Sunday as they aim for a strong start to the season. The return of Onana and Zirkzee adds depth to the squad, providing more options for Amorim as he strategises for upcoming matches.