Newly-arrived Inter goalkeeper Andre Onana will be given opportunities to show what he can do right away next season despite being the backup to captain Samir Handanovic in his position.
This according to today’s print edition of Rome-based newspaper Corriere dello Sport, who report that the arrangement will be similar to when Wojciech Szczesny arrived at Juventus to deputize for then-Bianconeri captain Gianluigi Buffon.
Onana arrives at Inter as the player identified to be Handanovic’s long-term heir as Inter’s first-choice goalkeeper, but the succession plan is not for him to take over the starting spot right away.
The captain has extended his contract for at least one more season, and is expected to begin the season as the first-choice in goal with Onana on the bench behind him.
However, as with when Szczesny made the switch from Roma to Juventus in the summer of 2017 and the Pole immediately got opportunities to start before becoming the first-choice the following season with Buffon departing for Paris Saint-Germain, Onana will not simply sit on the bench all season.
The team and coach Simone Inzaghi will decide on when the right opportunities are for Onana to get on the pitch and get a feel for life in a Nerazzurri shirt so that he is ready to take over on a permanent basis when Handanovic is ready to leave.
