1 clean sheet, 88% pass completion: Game-shy United man makes rare appearance for nation

Manchester United goalkeeper Altay Bayindir has made a rare start for Turkey as his side prepare for the World Cup this summer. Challenging career The Turkish international has managed just 17 appearances for the club in three seasons. He joined from Fenerbahce in 2023 and played six times last season, starting in goal for Ruben Amorim’s side. Bayindir had his difficulties, however, being badly at fault for Arsenal’s goal in their 1-0 win at Old Trafford to start the season. He was soon replaced by summer signing Senne Lammens and did not get a look-in during the rest of the season after losing his starting role in October. Transfer rumours Clearly, it seems that the Turk has no real future at the club, and there have been numerous rumours suggesting he will be leaving this summer. Besiktas and Trabzonspor in his native country have been linked with the player this summer. World Cup In spite of his lack of game time, Bayindir has been officially called up to Turkey’s World Cup squad. As a result, he was given a rare start this season in a 4-0 friendly victory over North Macedonia yesterday. He played 63 minutes, making one save from a shot inside the area. Bayindir did keep a clean sheet as he was rarely tested by the opposition. It was not a flawless performance, though, as he did make an error which resulted in a shot being taken by North Macedonia. The keeper completed an impressive 88% of his passes and recovered the ball five times for his nation. The Turks will play another friendly against Venezuela on Saturday night before kicking off their campaign against Australia on 14th June. Altay Bayindir stats vs North Macedonia StatisticValue Total saves1 Saves from inside box1 Punches0 High claims0 Errors leading to shot1 Key passes0 Crosses (accurate)0 (0) Accurate passes28/32 (88%) Passes in opposition half (acc.)3/6 (50%) Passes in own half (acc.)25/26 (96%) Long balls (accurate)7/10 (70%) Touches34 Dribbles (successful)0 (0) Possession lost4 Total carrying distance55.9 m Carries9 Total progression52.1 m Def. contributions0 Tackles (won)0 (0) Interceptions0 Clearances0 Blocked shots0 Recoveries5 Ground duels (won)0 (0) Dribbled past0 Errors leading to shot1 Total shots0 Shots on target0 Shots blocked0 Featured image Jan Kruger via Getty Images The Peoples Person has been one of the world’s leading Man United news sites for over a decade. Follow us on Bluesky: @peoplesperson.bsky.social Alex Browne Alex is a huge Manchester United fan, inspired by greats of his homeland such as George Best, Harry Gregg and Norman Whiteside. Alex has a Master’s degree from Queen’s University Belfast and La Universitat Rovira i Virgili in Tarragona, Spain. Having lived in the country since 2011, Alex is The Peoples Person’s Spanish football expert and is fluent in both Spanish and Catalan. He dreams of witnessing a United captain triumphantly hoisting the Premier League and Champions League trophy in the air once more.