Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana has been welcomed back into the Cameroon national team, nine months after he abruptly left the squad during the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
Rigobert Song, the coach of the Cameroon team, announced Onana’s inclusion in the lineup for the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Burundi. The match is set to take place in Garoua on September 12th. The Indomitable Lions only need a draw to secure their spot in the finals, which will be held in Ivory Coast in January.
Onana, who is 27 years old, had a falling out with Coach Song over training methods and tactics during the World Cup in Qatar. This disagreement occurred after their first group game against Switzerland in November. Following this incident, the Cameroon Football Federation suspended Onana and sent him home. Since then, he has not represented his country, having declared his retirement from international football.
Cameroon would end up exiting the World Cup in the group stages as they lost the first match to Switzerland and ended up drawing their second game against Serbia. They were able to pull off an upset over Brazil in the final group game, which proved to be a consolation win for them.
At a recent press conference in Yaounde, Coach Song refuted claims of any issues with Onana. He stated that it was only logical to include Onana in the squad, given his status as the best available goalkeeper.
“There was never a problem with Andre, the door has always been open to him and we are happy he is coming back to join the group,” said Song.
Onana had a fantastic 2022/23 campaign for Inter Milan and played a big role in their run to the Champions League final last season. He was then reunited with Erik ten Hag during the summer transfer window as he replaced David de Gea at the club.
