According to a new report, one Manchester United star had told his friends he was signing for Rúben Amorim before his 2025 summer move was cancelled.
Manchester United’s summer transfer business saw the club choose to invest heavily in their front line, with Rúben Amorim wanting to add more goals to his squad.
This resulted in around £200 million, including add-ons, being invested in bringing in Matheus Cunha from Wolverhampton Wanderers, Bryan Mbeumo from Brentford, and Benjamin Šeško from RB Leipzig.
On deadline day, United also chose to sign Senne Lammens from Royal Antwerp, with the Belgian shot-stopper joining for an £18 million fee.
Since then, the 23-year-old has made four appearances for the Reds, winning three and drawing one, which has paved the way for a host of compliments from former players and the current squad.
Martínez was convinced of United move
Although many are delighted to have seen the club sign Lammens during the final hours of the window, there was one man who wouldn’t have been – Aston Villa goalkeeper, Emiliano Martínez.
Martínez, rated at £35 million at the time, was another name under serious consideration by United for the position and was a particular favourite of Amorim’s, with the club even going so far as to submit a loan bid for the Argentina international earlier in the summer.
According to MailSport, the 33-year-old was ‘absolutely convinced’ that he was signing for United right until the very last moment, when the club opted to bring in Lammens instead.
The World Cup winner reportedly even informed his friends that the move would be going through right up until the final moments, when he then remained at Villa Park.
United are handling Lammens properly
When the club announced that they had signed the relatively unknown 23-year-old, many questioned why he had been chosen over Martínez, as the club’s initial policy this summer had been to bring in experienced Premier League players.
Lammens then did not make his debut for over a month, with Altay Bayındır favoured in goal; however, poor performances from the Turkish international increased calls for the Belgian to be given his debut.
Lammens then played very well against Sunderland, keeping a clean sheet during a 2-0 win at Old Trafford, and has started every game since.
Speaking to Belgian media last week, Lammens revealed that having a month of training before making his debut was the right call, as it allowed him time to assess and adjust to his new surroundings.
“Those first few weeks were difficult, yes,” he told HLN. The quality is much higher, you know. And you have to wage war on set pieces here. I saw things I’d never experienced before.
“The opponents grab you and block you, but the referee just lets play continue. You have to adapt to that. As a goalkeeper, you can’t hesitate, and you have to be a leader.
“Watching from the bench for the first few weeks was the ideal scenario. I had time to settle in and got my chance at the right time. It’s my achievement that I took it. Those three wins in a row just make it even better.”
Make sure to follow UtdDistrict on X, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok to never miss out on any of our Manchester United content. Our podcast, What the Devil?, is streamed live every Thursday at 14:00 pm (GMT) on the United View YouTube channel.