Onana explains how Milan’s Maignan helped him at Inter: ‘I arrived a a no.2’ | OneFootball

Former Inter goalkeeper and current Manchester United no.1 Andre Onana has explained how Milan’s rival stopper Mike Maignan helped spur him on in San Siro, explaining that the Frenchman’s performance in a derby between the two sides helped dislodge Samir Handanovic and give the Cameroonian his first run of games under Simone Inzaghi.

Onana played for just one season with Inter, in 2022-23, but earned a €55m move to Manchester United off the back of his performances, which helped the Nerazzurri on their journey to the Champions League final that campaign.

Onana was not the first-choice goalkeeper when he arrived at Inter at the end of his time with Dutch giants Ajax, though. Long-term Nerazzurri servant Samir Handanovic, who was the captain at the time, was still Inzaghi’s no.1.

Onana believes that Milan’s Maignan helped turn that situation around though.

Speaking on the Carré podcast, Onana had nothing but positive things to say about his rival goalkeeper in Milan.

“He’s a very good goalkeeper and a very good person, someone I appreciate a lot,” he explained.

“We’ve enjoyed playing against each other several times, in Italy, in the Champions League. I’d heard about him, he’d heard about me, and I’d always say to myself: ‘Okay, there’s some serious competition’.

“We have to go out there and take each other out, because we forget everything else on the pitch. If he has a good kicking game, I have to show that I am better. If he makes a good save, I have to show that I am better.”

How Maignan helped Onana become Inter’s no.1

Onana explained why he felt ‘conflicted’ when he first joined Inter.

“The best matches were when I arrived at Inter. Mike Maignan was the guardian for our rivals. He won the Scudetto, he was the champion of Italy, the best goalkeeper in Italy. Me, I arrived at Inter and Simone Inzaghi said: ‘Samir Handanovic will be my goalkeeper’,

“I arrived and I already felt conflicted, s***. I arrived as a number two.”

epa09967114 Inter Milan’s head coach Simone Inzaghi (R) and goalkeeper Samir Handanovic react at the end of the Italian serie A soccer match between FC Inter and Sampdoria at Giuseppe Meazza stadium in Milan, 22 May 2022. EPA-EFE/DANIEL DAL ZENNARO

Onana went on to pin-point the exact moment that things started to turn around for him at Inter. He suggests that Maignan’s performance in a Derby della Madonnina in September 2023 helped him become a starter in San Siro.

“Mike, indirectly, he made me a starter. We played the derby, Milan-Inter, and I’m on the bench. From the start of the season we didn’t win enough, it was a bit difficult. Simone Inzaghi wasn’t happy, it was a bit negative, and then we played against Milan. We lost 3-2, and Samir Handanovic didn’t play a brilliant game, but Mike Maignan was huge, and my teammates were already starting to push: ‘We have to let him play’, so it was this match.

“We wanted to see who was best, who is the King of Milan. And from there, I started to play in the Champions League. I played against Bayern, it went well, I played against Barcelona.”

MILAN, ITALY – MAY 16: Andre Onana of FC Internazionale celebrates after Lautaro Martinez of FC Internazionale scores the team’s first goal during the UEFA Champions League semi-final second leg match between FC Internazionale and AC Milan at Stadio Giuseppe Meazza on May 16, 2023 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images)

Onana played the full 90 minutes in every one of Inter’s Champions League matches that season, going unbeaten in 10 out of 13 performances, only losing to Bayern Munich in the group stages, and then Manchester City in the eventual final in Istanbul.

He also went on to secure the no.1 spot in Serie A as well, playing 14 consecutive matches between October and February, plus another 10 starts in the league then as well.