Manchester United are on the verge of completing a deal for Belgian goalkeeper Senne Lammens as they look to strengthen their backline.
Despite the signings of Bryan Mbeumo, Matheus Cunha and Benjamin Šeško in attack, Manchester United’s need for improvements at the back remains clear.
Altay Bayındır and André Onana have both been making mistakes in between the sticks and a new goalkeeper has been needed.
United have agreed a deal with Royal Antwerp to sign Senne Lammens for an initial £18 million, with the Belgian being preferred over Emi Martínez from Aston Villa.
Lammens is expected to conduct a medical at Carrington and sign a long-term contract at United before the transfer deadline on Monday evening.
When Lammens could make United debut
Lammens is coming into the club to hopefully solve United’s goalkeeping issues and fans will be eager for his first game for the club.
With a two-week international break now, Lammens will be able to get used to his new surroundings before club football resumes later this month.
But Ruben Amorim’s side are facing Manchester City away from home when they return to action on Sunday, 14 September. The United boss is unlikely to throw Lammens in for his debut in this clash.
The following game comes against Chelsea on Saturday, 20 September at Old Trafford, which is another tough fixture for the Reds. Soon afterwards are clashes against Brentford (away, Sat, 27 Sep) and Sunderland (home, Sat, 4 October).
The Manchester Evening News have reported that ‘It is unclear if Lammens will go in as United’s new No.1’ after his arrival.
Lammens debut will depend on Onana and Bayındır performance
It feels like the most likely debut for Lammens is the Sunderland home game, although that is more than a month away from now.
But the goalkeeper’s situation will largely depend on whether the alternatives continue to make mistakes. If Onana or Bayındır cost United against City, then Lammens could be in the starting lineup to face Chelsea the following weekend.
Read More: Wayne Rooney agrees with Rio Ferdinand on Manchester United’s “fantastic” deadline day transfer
Amorim has regularly defending his goalkeepers but his true feelings will probably come out more now that an alternative will be in the building.
Any last-minute exits for Bayındır or Onana could also impact when Lammens could make his United debut, with a small chance that he lines up against City if one of Onana or Bayındır departs.
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 12:30 pm (BST) on the United View YouTube channel.