Manchester United signed Senne Lammens from Royal Antwerp in an £18.2million deal on deadline day, with the Belgian goalkeeper impressing in his early days at Old Trafford
Aaron Morris Senior Sports Reporter
16:46, 17 Oct 2025
Senne Lammens signed for Manchester United this summer(Image: Ash Donelon, Manchester United via Getty Images)
Senne Lammens’ impressive confidence, technical prowess and work ethic led to him signing for Manchester United.
The youngster arrived at Old Trafford in an £18.2million deadline day transfer from Royal Antwerp. Despite Ruben Amorim’s earlier insistence on sticking with Andre Onana, Altay Bayindir and Tom Heaton, it seems his decision shifted as the transfer window was about to close.
Bayindir had been the manager’s first choice following Onana’s injury recovery, but a series of costly mistakes at the start of the Premier League season raised concerns. Onana, meanwhile, made his return during United’s Carabao Cup match against Grimsby Town, where he let in two sloppy goals, resulting in United being knocked out of the competition on penalties by the League Two side.
As the transfer window was closing, United were heavily linked with a move for an unsettled Emiliano Martinez of Aston Villa, but the board ultimately decided on the younger Lammens. Rik de Mil’s assessment of the 23-year-old goalkeeper further justifies United’s decision.
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The head coach of Club NXT at the time of Lammens’ breakthrough recently told the Athletic about the moment he realised the young player’s potential. Back in December 2019, Club Brugge’s youth team were 2-1 down against Real Madrid in the UEFA Youth League deep into injury time, needing a goal to reach the knockout rounds for the first time in the club’s history.
With Brugge about to take a corner and nothing left to lose, De Mil instructed Lammens to venture forward and try to make an impact. The keeper then sprinted into the penalty area to connect with Maxim De Cuyper’s delivery at the near post, nodding the ball back across the face of goal to net the equaliser, reports the Mirror.
It was in that instant that De Mil recognised just how technically gifted and assured Lammens truly was. He told the Athletic: “It didn’t surprise me that he…OK, at that moment it surprised me a little bit. But it didn’t surprise me that technically, it was so good.
“It didn’t surprise me that he’s on the right timing there; that also the technique of his heading is good, because his mobility is good. He was sometimes better than some players with the ball.”
Senne Lammens made his Manchester United debut against Sunderland(Image: Offside via Getty Images)
De Mil also revealed that Lammens would frequently ask to play outfield during training sessions to improve his footwork – an unusual request for a goalkeeper. In another part of his interview, De Mil described how he quickly spotted an unmatched work ethic in Lammens.
The coach had been working late at the Brugge training facility one evening, sitting at a desk that looked out over the gym. It was around 10pm when the lights flickered on, and De Mil spotted Lammens arriving back at the club for a solitary late-night training session.
He said: “He had been sitting at home, thinking I’m doing nothing here, so I’ll go back to the training ground and I’ll be all alone there in the gym,” before adding: “We always talked about keeping that balance of pushing and being ambitious, but at the same time, sometimes giving yourself a break. He put a lot of pressure on himself.”
It seems that Lammens’ hard work is now bearing fruit. The shot-stopper made his debut for Manchester United before the international break, managing to keep a clean sheet as the Red Devils clinched a 2-0 victory over newly-promoted Sunderland, with fans chanting: “Are you [Peter] Schmeichel in disguise?”
And it looks like he will retain his position ahead of Bayindir when United head to Anfield to take on Liverpool in the Northwest derby on Sunday, October 19. Speaking about the goalkeeper during his pre-match press conference, Amorim said: “Nothing is impossible, you have to prove you can start every week.
“It is possible he can play. He is not Schmeichel yet, he is a young guy with talent and the fans liked it.”
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