Senne Lammens has been outstanding since arriving at Manchester United from Royal Antwerp this summer.
The Red Devils were looking to address their long-standing goalkeeping issues this year, and were also linked with Aston Villa’s Emiliano Martinez for the job.
The Argentine was reportedly open to a move to Old Trafford as well, but the transfer failed to materialise.
Instead, Ruben Amorim turned to Lammens, and United secured his signature on transfer deadline day for a reported €21m fee, plus a further €4m in add-ons.
Impressive start to Old Trafford tenure
Amorim opted against throwing Lammens directly into the line of fire following the move. The Portuguese head coach continued to stick with Altay Bayindir in goal, despite the Turkey international’s shaky start to the season.
The Belgian, as such, watched from the sidelines as United lost 3-0 to Manchester City, secured a hard-fought 2-1 win against Chelsea, and succumbed to a 3-1 defeat at the hands of Brentford.
Lammens’ time finally arrived at the beginning of October against Sunderland in the Premier League. The 23 year old was outstanding against the Black Cats, prompting the Old Trafford crowd to serenade him with the chant: ‘Are you Schmeichel in disguise?’
The Belgian marked his debut with a 2-0 win and United’s first clean sheet of the season. Lammens consequently kept his place against Liverpool last weekend, and played a key role in the 2-1 victory. His performances have now drawn praise from two of his former teammates.
A tremendous shot-stopper
Simon Mignolet saw Lammens emerge onto the scene during their time together at Club Brugge. Speaking recently, as cited by Voetbal Primeur, the former Liverpool custodian was full of praise for his countryman.
“He has the build and the qualities to succeed in England. He’s big, explosive, and strong on high balls. And he can save balls that other goalkeepers can’t,” said Mignolet.
“With his shot-stopping, he can score points for United. He’s steady in his head and handles pressure well. He has the ability to bounce back after a mistake and stay calm.”
Denis Odoi, who saw Lammens up close at both Club Brugge and Antwerp, added: “Senne is rather introverted, even in the dressing room. He’s not very exuberant. That calmness is typical of his personality.”
“He’s very conscientious. He really does everything he can to make sure he can’t blame himself for anything.
“Sometimes we’d come back from a match against Club Brugge at 1 a.m. and he’d still be in the gym. Because he hadn’t played as second-choice goalkeeper, he wanted to get some work done.”
Lammens’ impressive start to life at the Theatre of Dreams could signal the end of Andre Onana’s stay at United. The Cameroonian has struggled to impress since arriving from Inter Milan in the summer of 2023 and joined Trabzonspor this summer on a season-long loan.
Featured image Gareth Copley via Getty Images
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Deepungsu Pandit
Deepungsu has been a Manchester United fan since 2000. In his playing days, he was an attacking midfielder with a proclivity for the back heel. Right now, however, he prefers to operate as a regista. Deepungsu has been writing about the Red Devils, Football, and other things since 2009. He has worked for over seven years with Sportskeeda, writing football reviews, opinions and news articles. Deepungsu also maintains a blog, The Thinking Me, where he writes about life and things that interest him. His favourite Manchester United player is Paul Scholes.
