Manchester, April 16 (IANS) Manchester United head coach has confirmed that Andrey Onana will return in between the goal posts for the side for the game against Lyon, after being dropped for the 1-4 loss against Newcastle United. Striker Joshua Zirkzee has also been ruled out for the season after picking up what looked like a hamstring injury against the Toons.

Onana has been under heavy criticism, especially after former United midfielder and current Lyon midfielder Nemanja Matic labelled him as the ‘worst goalkeeper in modern Man Utd history.’ The Cameroonian did not help his case by making two crucial mistakes, both of which led to Lyon scoring in the 2-2 draw in the first leg.

Onana was replaced by Altay Bayindir. Unfortunately for Amorim, he too failed to stay strong in front of the Newcastle attack.

"Joshua [Zirkzee] is out for the season. He will not play more this season, let's prepare him for the next one. It is tough for him, especially at this moment. He is improving in all aspects, and it is hard for any player to stop,” said Amorim in the pre-game conference.

On the question of who will start in goal, Amorim replied, "Onana, he will play tomorrow."

The Portuguese head coach also dove into the decision to bench Onana for the game on the weekend and explained why he felt the need to sit out his first-choice goalkeeper.

"As a coach and former player, first of all, I try to do things that can help a player in this situation. We speak about managing players physically, but we also have to manage them mentally. We had one weekend where I felt it was better for Andre Onana not to play and a good thing for Altay [Bayindir] to play,” he added.

Harry Maguire, the player accompanying Amorim for media duties on the day, also reassured that the backline benefits from playing in front of Onana and backed him to return to his best self.

"First and foremost, Andre has proved in his past that he is an excellent goalkeeper. He has won numerous trophies, he has played in Champions League finals. During a career, you always have spells of ups and downs, and you find yourself a little bit out of form. It is about how you build yourself back in and find that confidence to perform again.

"At the moment, he is probably feeling that everything is going against him. You take it game by game. He'll be there tomorrow night, and he is a big personality, a big character, and he will be looking forward to the game. He will want to show everyone again what he is about.

"Playing in front of Andre it's great. I have confidence in Andre, he has had a fantastic career. He has great experience, and we all know he is an excellent goalkeeper.

--IANS

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