When Manchester United defeated Sunderland 2-0 last weekend, it wasn’t just the team’s effort that caught spectators’ attention.
Goalkeeper Senne Lammens proved to be a standout player in what was his Man United debut.
In addition to keeping United’s first clean sheet of the Premier League season, Lammens made three saves and two high claims along while winning his only aerial duel of the match.
Still, even as fans might feel encouraged to develop high expectations of Lammens, it would be wise to avoid overhyping the Belgian, especially given how this could result in history repeating itself.
Praise of Lammens mounts up
Following his heroics against Sunderland, Lammens earned the praise of numerous United alumni.
Rio Ferdinand highlighted how secure the goalkeeper looked in his role, as well as his confidence when coming out from the goalmouth to block attackers in their path.
Legendary United goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel also couldn’t keep silent following Lammens’ performance, going so far as to compare him with Edwin van der Sar, particularly with his diving saves and long ball distribution.
Still, United fans would do well to steer clear of following in these former players’ footsteps when it comes to expecting so much success from Lammens.
History repeating itself?
Far too often, United fans have gotten fully behind an in-form player, expecting him to move mountains for the club and then expressing disappointment when he falls short of such lofty expectations.
One doesn’t even have to go too far back in time to find examples of this misstep.
A recent glaring example is Alejandro Garnacho, who was tipped to become a star at Old Trafford before he fell out of favour with Ruben Amorim. He now finds himself at Chelsea, looking to continue his career growth without United’s locker room drama.
Kobbie Mainoo also received massive praise from fans for his performances for United since making the senior squad. This summer, however, a brutal dose of reality hit him when Amorim appeared to have pushed him to the sidelines, with a loan move seemingly on the cards due for the youngster due to his lack of gametime.
There is then Amad Diallo. Constantly lauded as a revelation on the wing, Amad has underperformed in recent times, showing that he too is mortal.
While there is nothing wrong with praising Lammens for his strong performances and this should in fact be encouraged, United fans must avoid placing expectations that are too heavy onto his shoulders. This sort of behaviour will ultimately lead to disappointment and could even result in animosity towards the player that he does not deserve.
The best thing that United fans can do is support Lammens as he adjusts to his new role while exhibiting a level of understanding that things are not always going to go his way. After all, United remain in a slow and gruelling rebuild, and even a few surprisingly decent results will not necessarily signal the team’s material transformation.
Featured image Octavio Passos via Getty Images
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Mathew Cohen
A faithful Manchester United supporter, Mathew has worked as a football writer and analyst for SB Nation, FanSided, and now The Peoples Person. Mathew’s heroes include David Beckham, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Sir Alex Ferguson, all of whom played their part in creating some special childhood memories.
