Omonia keeper Uzoho had eerie message for Man Utd ‘icon’ De Gea

Man Utd v Omonoia: Match in pictures

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Omonia Nicosia goalkeeper Francis Uzoho sent David de Gea an eerie message including the phrase ‘Am coming for you’, five years before last night’s masterclass at Old Trafford. The Nigerian’s heroics weren’t enough to take anything from the Europa League clash, however, as Manchester United struck late to seal a narrow 1-0 victory. 

There were fears that Uzoho could crumble under the bright lights on Thursday, having been drafted in to replace first-choice keeper Fabiano. But a superb early save from Marcus Rashford seemingly gave him confidence and, for virtually the full 90 minutes, he formed a human barricade to prevent the Red Devils from edging in front. 

No less than 11 saves were made before substitute Scott McTominay lashed in from close range in second-half stoppage time. Omonia players could hardly believe that they were denied in such fashion but lifelong United fan Uzoho was beaming after the final whistle following his heroic display. 

Back in 2017, the 23-year-old posted on Twitter: “Happy birthday to my idol. Am coming for you though David de Gea [laughing emoji].”

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Although Uzoho’s performance may not have urged United boss Erik ten Hag to rethink De Gea’s spot between the sticks, he did eerily come through on his claim by putting on a show at Old Trafford. After the game, De Gea himself was among those to single out his defeated opponent. 

“[Uzoho] made an amazing game and kept his team in the game, in the end we scored, but he made a great game,” said the Spaniard. When told that the Nigerian is a United fan, he responded: “Really? I didn’t know. Congratulations to him!”

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Uzoho himself could hardly hide his happiness, despite the agonising nature of Omonia’s defeat. Smiles and embraces with his team-mates were followed by a feel-good interview, in which he claimed that it may have been the best performance of his career. 

“I am not disappointed because we had a good game,” Uzoho told BT Sport. “It would have been perfect to get at least a point but I’m happy. It is not an easy stadium to play in with these big players but I’m happy in general.”

When asked whether it was the best performance of his career, the Omonia hero responded: “Arguably, I think so. I am proud of my team-mates because it was not a one-man job. We gave everything out there as a team and I am happy with my performance.”

Still young in goalkeeping terms, the 6ft 6in star has a decent haul of caps at international level for Nigeria, while his showing at Old Trafford will surely earn him a more prominent role at Omonia or elsewhere, rather than playing back-up for Fabiano. 

Uzoho was snapped up by Deportivo La Coruna as a teenager before switching over to Cypriot football in 2019, initially on loan to Omonia before joining their rivals APOEL. Manager Neil Lennon’s next Europa League assignment is a home tie against group leaders Real Sociedad in two weeks’ time. 

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