Kampala
Oh na-na, what's my name? André Onana, born in Nkol Ngok - Southwest of the Cameroonian capital Yaounde 28 years ago - is the name.
And it is not just a name, it is the name of Cameroon’s number one goalkeeper. Most crucially, it is the name of a global sports brand - Manchester United - star.
That immense power associated with ‘brand Man Utd’ was on full display at Namboole Stadium in Kampala on Tuesday as Onana and the Cameroonian national football team took on Zimbabwe in the 2025 Afcon qualifiers.
Zimbabwe hosted this match at Namboole because Caf rendered their home stadiums substandard for these qualifiers.
Onana, known for his daring style of play where he has supporters’ hearts in their throat as he indulges in the game nearly in the middle of the park - was heroically welcomed to Namboole.
Clad in their predominantly red jerseys and waiving the club flags, Ugandan Manchester United fans were seen surrounding and moving along with the bus carrying the Cameroonian team at the stadium.
At one point, after taking in the scene through the bus window, Onana was seen and heard asking his teammates to record him as he brought down the glass to return the fans' love.
“Record this,” Onana asked his colleagues in a video that has made social media rounds, “It’s very important for me.”
Inside the stadium, almost every movement of limbs by Onana drew loud chants and blowing of vuvuzela by thousands of fans.
Indeed, sizable sections of about 15,000 supporters inside Namboole donned Man Utd jerseys, with some waving the club flags.
Some of the placards displayed by the fans read “Onana, thank you for visiting Uganda, but we, M. United fans are not happy with the lineup of your boss T.H” in an apparent message to Utd manager Erik Ten Hag.
Ten Hag has come under increased pressure for his team’s poor start to the 2024/25 Premier League season, where his selections have also been questioned.
Another placard made a case for Uganda Cranes latest star, striker Denis Omedi of Kitara, to join Man United.
“Please Onana, ask Ten Hag to sign Omedi (14),” it read, with the 14 representing Omedi’s Cranes shirt number.
Omedi is enjoying a rich vein of form and scored a long range strike in the 2-2 draw with South Africa.
From warm-ups, during the match and after, the love for Onana from fans was almost tangible.
And from his reaction and acknowledgement, putting his hand on his heart with another in the air, and then both arms in the air in bowing posture before the fans, it seemed all too much - if not humbling for the Cameroonian star.
At the final whistle, military police attempted to go on the pitch in the old archaic way of crowd management but were gladly stopped in their tracks by Dixon Okello, the head of matchday security.
Onana - with plain clothed security keeping a close watch - then made nearly a lap of honour taking in the love and acknowledging it - giving away to fans in the stands his shoes, shin guards and goalkeeping gloves.
“It’s a great pleasure for the team to have a superstar like Andre Onana and it’s great to have supporters behind us in a foreign country,” said Cameroon captain Vincent Aboubakar in the post-match press conference.
Long after the match, Onana had to be whisked away in a Toyota Premio car after battling through excited United fans who wanted a piece of him. The rest of the team left the stadium in their bus.
Such was his star and his global club’s aura that you wondered which teams were playing. You could actually make a case that Man United hosted Zimbabwe and Cameroon. By the way, that match ended goalless.
Good start for Pamoja countries
And talking match results, it was a good return for Pamoja Bid countries on matchday two of the 2025 Afcon qualifiers.
After Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania - who will jointly host Afcon 2027 - drawing their opening matches, they all stepped up on matchday two to win their respective games.
Aziz Kayondo and debutant Jude Ssemugabi scored Uganda’s goals in the 2-0 victory over Congo on Monday to go top of Group K on goal difference.
The Cranes and Bafana Bafana of South Africa, who drew 2-2 last Friday, have four points apiece, but with Uganda topping because of a better goal difference.
Kenya, who drew goalless with Zimbabwe last Friday at Namboole, also stepped up to beat Namibia 2-1 away in South Africa.
The Harambee Stars have the same four points as Cameroon but top Group J because of their better offence.
Tanzania drew goalless their opener with Ethiopia, but recovered to beat Guinea 2-1 away from home. They are second in Group H on four points, two behind perfect DR. Congo.
The next round of the 2025 Afcon qualifiers is next month, where Uganda play South Sudan back-to-back on October 7 at Namboole and Juba six days later.
