Senne Lammens: A Dream Move to Manchester United – But When Will He Play?

Senne Lammens’ transfer to Manchester United was one of the more interesting stories on transfer deadline day.

The 23-year-old goalkeeper from Royal Antwerp had been on United’s radar for some time. The club’s interest became serious in the final week of the transfer window, and on deadline day, they finally made their move.

By then, Lammens was already on his way to England — just in case the deal went through. It was confirmed at 10pm, five hours after the transfer window had officially closed. By that time, Aston Villa’s World Cup winner Emiliano Martinez, who had also hoped for a move to Old Trafford, had already given up.

Lammens joined Manchester United for £18.1 million and called the transfer “a dream come true” and “the beginning of something special.”

Still Waiting for His First Game

Three weeks have passed since the transfer, but Lammens is yet to play a game. It’s unclear whether head coach Ruben Amorim will give him his Premier League debut soon — perhaps away at Brentford on Saturday or at home to Sunderland on 4 October — or if he’ll need to wait even longer.

Importantly, there’s no sign that Lammens has done anything wrong. People at the club say the Belgian Under-21 international has trained well and made a good impression. He is described as calm, mature for his age, and settling into life in Manchester — he’s even moved out of a hotel and into a permanent home.

United’s third-choice keeper, Tom Heaton, said on a podcast:

“He has a strong personality. His basic goalkeeping skills are excellent. I told him that after just a few days of training. He’s been very impressive so far.”

Bought for the Future

Sources at United have said that Lammens was signed with the future in mind. His stats from last season are impressive:

• 30 games in the Belgian Pro League

• 7 clean sheets

• 173 saves — more than any other goalkeeper in Europe’s top-10 leagues

• 4 penalties saved — the best in Europe

• 77.4% save percentage

• 71.5% passing accuracy

• 18.4 ‘goals prevented’, according to data firm Opta

Former Belgium defender Toby Alderweireld said:

“Senne is young, has a big frame, and will be a perfect fit in England.”

Still, he has only had one full season as a first-choice keeper and just 57 senior appearances. Throwing him straight into a high-pressure match like the Manchester derby (14 September) would have been a big risk — and Amorim chose not to.

Amorim explained:

“He has a lot of potential, but we also have to focus on the present. Right now, our goalkeeper needs to be very experienced. It’s a different league, a different country, and even a different ball.”

Bayindir Still First Choice – For Now

For now, Turkey international Altay Bayindir remains the first-choice goalkeeper. He started the 3-0 loss to Manchester City and kept his spot for the 1-0 win over Chelsea.

But stats suggest Bayindir may not be a long-term solution. Among Premier League goalkeepers with at least two games:

• 16th for save percentage (50%)

• 17th for passing accuracy

• 18th for long pass accuracy

• He has conceded 8 goals, more than his expected figure of 7.14

These figures suggest it’s only a matter of when, not if, Lammens gets his chance.

When Will Lammens Make His Debut?

One problem is the lack of easier matches to ease Lammens in. United were knocked out of the EFL Cup by Grimsby before he arrived, and he wasn’t named in the squad for the recent Premier League International Cup match.

That means his next competitive game will likely be in the Premier League — a high-pressure environment where opposition teams will try to target him as a young, inexperienced keeper.

Calls for Patience

Former United goalkeeper Roy Carroll has urged fans not to rush to judge Lammens:

“He’s only 23. Please give him time to grow into the role of a Manchester United goalkeeper. We did it with David De Gea — he also made mistakes early on, but he developed into one of the best. Time is important. Every keeper makes mistakes; the key is not to make too many.”