Manchester United keeper Andre Onana has backed his countryman Francis Ngannou to beat Anthony Joshua when both fighters step into the ring in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on Friday, March 8.
Onana, a 27-year-old goalie who is a friend to the MMA star hopes Ngannou causes an upset in the ring in Riyadh and gets his first boxing win after losing to Tyson Fury on points in October 2023.
Ngannou is a big United fan and attended our tour game in Las Vegas against Borussia Dortmund last summer.
“I have a good friend of mine, Francis Ngannou,” Onana told us. “He is a world champion. He and Anthony Joshua will fight in Riyadh. I hope Ngannou will win,” Onana said as reported by Manchester United.
“Anthony is a strong one as well but, on another day, you just have to enjoy it. The best is going to win and we are going to support all of them.
“Francis is a big United fan. I met him in Las Vegas last time, and he was happy when he heard that I was coming to Manchester United. So, for me, it’s something great.”
Onana watched the heavyweight contest between Fury, another Reds supporter, and Ngannou, last October.
The fight ended with a win for the Gypsy King on a split points decision, but the Predator cut the Briton and some felt he could have been awarded the victory by the judges.
“He did his best,” Onana added.
“Two big guys, they fought and it was very nice to watch. I enjoyed it, it was, for me, great to watch. Like I said, two different people with different mentalities but it was good to watch them because, you see, life is different, some people are different.
“It was good to look at what Tyson was doing and what Ngannou was doing. It was a big lesson.”
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