21-year-old reveals reason for rejecting Manchester United move despite receiving summer offer

Japanese goalkeeper Zion Suzuki has revealed that he rejected a move to Manchester United in the summer because they signed Andre Onana. He felt it was not the right move at this point in his career.

Speaking to Voetbalbelgie, Suzuki, who currently plays for Belgian club Sint-Truidense, explained that it was important for him to get minutes under his belt, which was not possible at Manchester United. The 21-year-old still wants to be the first Japanese goalkeeper in the Premier League. He said:

"My dream is to play in the Premier League. It is true that I have received an offer from Manchester United, but United have acquired Onana this season, so I want to play at a level where I can play. Even if I can't go there [Premier League] now, I definitely want to go there in a few years. To progress step by step, I decided to move to Belgium. There are still no Japanese who are active as goalkeepers in the Premier League, so I want to be one of the first players to do so. I want to keep moving forward step by step."

After rejecting a move to Old Trafford, Suzuki joined Sint-Truiden on loan for the season. The Urawa Red Diamonds star was previously on loan at STVV, who finished at the bottom of the Belgian Pro League last season.

Manchester United told Andre Onana will cost them points

Football pundit Richard Keys believes that Manchester United have not made a wise decision in signing Andre Onana. The former Sky Sports presenter believes that the goalkeeper will cost them more points than David de Gea last season. He wrote on X:

"I've got a horrible feeling this guy will cost United as many points in a season as De Gea used to save. This is a big call by Ten Hag."

However, Erik ten Hag is confident about Onana's abilities. He has worked with the goalkeeper at Ajax and believes in the Cameroon star. He said in a pres conference:

"Most important, always for a keeper, is clean sheets and he's not doing that on his own. Therefore, you need a very good defensive organisation, it's quite clear. But also the capabilities of a keeper is about keeping the goal clean. So this is the first criterion of a good goalkeeper."

Onana has not made the best of starts at Manchester United and has conceded 10 goals in the first six Premier League matches.