Rio Ferdinand has explained what Thibaut Courtois told him about Manchester United’s deadline day transfer, Senne Lammens.
Manchester United have completed the signing of 23-year-old goalkeeper Senne Lammens from Royal Antwerp as Rúben Amorim secured his fifth first-team signing of the summer.
Following the continued frailties of André Onana and Altay Bayındır in goal, United opted to secure a new goalkeeper ahead of a new midfielder, with Amorim keen to bolster the club’s confidence at the back.
Lammens joins United for an initial £18.2 million transfer fee, which could rise by a further £3.5 million with add-ons.
The deal is set to be announced in the coming hours, following the completion of his medical and signing of his contract on Monday afternoon.
Courtois feels Lammens is suited to the Premier League
When fans think of Belgian Premier League goalkeepers, one of the first who comes to mind is Thibaut Courtois, who played four seasons in England’s domestic top flight with Chelsea, winning two Premier League titles, an FA Cup, and two League Cups before joining Real Madrid in 2018.
Courtois has kept a close eye on the development of his fellow Belgian shot-stopper over the last few seasons, and recently told United legend Rio Ferdinand that he feels Lammens is a player who suits the Premier League style.
“That voice note was Thibaut Courtois, by the way, just letting me know about Lammens because he’s a Belgian player,” Ferdinand said on his YouTube channel.
“So he was just giving me the heads up as to what he’s like. He said he’s a huge talent, obviously not experienced yet, but he said he thinks his style will be suited to the Premier League big as well.
“That recommendation from probably one of the best free goalkeepers in the world, Thibaut Courtois, I’m taking that. I keep seeing people talking about their talent and whatnot, but the problem is, can Man United afford to wait for talent to develop at this point in time?”
Lammens could become United’s No. 1
While the interest United have had in Lammens has been apparent all summer, United were only able to finalise personal terms with the player and agree a transfer fee with Antwerp during the final hours of the window.
According to various reports, much of this came down to Lammens wanting to see a clear route to becoming United’s first-choice goalkeeper amid competition from Bayındır and Onana.
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With the current United duo so far failing to impose themselves properly at the club across the opening four ties of the season, Lammens very well could find himself as Rúben Amorim’s first choice.
After signing his contract with the Reds and not being called up for Belgium, he will start training in the coming days and will spend two weeks with Amorim to assess the new signing.
The club’s first game back after the international break is a highly anticipated fixture away from home against Manchester City. With Onana and Bayındır failing to prove themselves to the head coach, Amorim could slot Lammens straight into the starting team in mid-September.
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