Manchester United is said to have made a substantial payment to extend Andre Onana’s stay ahead of the Africa Cup of Nations.
The AFCON is held biennially, with this year’s edition hosted in the Ivory Coast.
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Before the tournament, a significant number of participating players departed their respective clubs early to ready themselves for the competition.
As an illustration, Liverpool’s key player, Mohamed Salah, departed following their 4-2 victory over Newcastle United on New Year’s Day.
In contrast, Onana featured for United against Tottenham Hotspur on January 14, despite Cameroon’s inaugural AFCON match occurring on January 15.
Although Onana missed his country’s first match, he started in Friday evening’s 3-1 defeat against Senegal.
Presently, reports indicate that United incurred a substantial expense to prolong Onana’s stay in Manchester.
As per The Athletic, United covered the expenses for Onana’s flight to maximize his extended presence, with the total cost of the trip reportedly being at least £79,000.
Despite criticism for his performance in the match against Senegal, Onana’s manager refrained from attributing blame to the goalkeeper.
Rigobert Song said: “I’m not going to blame anyone, I’m going to take responsibility.
“My players fought. We must recognise that Senegal were better than us. The next match we will win and qualify for the next round.”
Onana said after the game to Canal+ Sport Afrique, via 90Min: “Maybe they played better. We had our chances, both teams had their periods.
“We had the opportunity to come back to 2-2, it didn’t work out. Everything depends on details and the match has changed. On the verge of elimination? No. We are a great nation, with an important match coming up and we are going to give everything. We know very well that it’s going to be difficult, that’s why we’re here. And we will assume our responsibilities.”
He added: “We must also recognise the quality of the opposing team. We played against the African champion, they put us in difficulty. But in the last 45 minutes, we were better. We must learn from our mistakes.”
