Featured Image Credit: X/@UtdKev8 - Getty Images
Topics: Man Utd, Fan Reactions, Premier League, Sunderland, Ruben Amorim
Jack Kenmare
Topics: Man Utd, Fan Reactions, Premier League, Sunderland, Ruben Amorim
Thousands of fans inside Old Trafford serenaded summer signing Senne Lammens with a new chant as the Belgian goalkeeper made his long-awaited Manchester United debut.
Lammens, who joined United from Royal Antwerp on deadline day in a deal worth £18.2 million, was handed his first competitive start for the Reds against newly-promoted Sunderland.
Described as having a calm presence between the sticks, the 23-year-old outperformed every goalkeeper in Europe's top leagues across 2024-25.
Lammens faced shots worth a total of 45 expected goals in the Belgian Pro League last season and conceded only 32. In fact, he ranked first for total saves made with a 77.4 per cent save percentage.
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"He has a strong personality," fellow goalkeeper Tom Heaton told the Training Ground Guru podcast. "His goalkeeping fundamentals are very impressive. I said that to him after a couple of days' training. He's been very impressive so far."
Lammens has impressed in first-team training of late and on Saturday, he repaid Ruben Amorim's faith with an assured performance against Sunderland after he was picked ahead of Altay Bayindir.
As per Statman Dave, the Belgian recorded 11 ball recoveries on his debut, as well as three saves and two high claims – a performance that earned him a new chant from the Stretford End faithful.
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Moments after catching the ball, fans started to chant: "Are you Schmeichel in disguise?" at Lammens, who must have been bursting with pride at being compared to one of United's all-time greats.
Here's how fans reacted to the chant.
One said: "Stretty already singing his name… that’s how you know he’s him," and another commented: "We have suffered for a long time." A third added: "Brilliant."
Last month, Schmeichel said he thought his former club should have moved for Emiliano Martinez or Gianluigi Donnarumma rather than the Belgian.
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In fact, the Dane claimed he had "never heard" of Lammens before the deal was struck, although he may have changed his mind following the Sunderland game.
"I know his stats are excellent across the top ten European leagues. But that was with Antwerp in Belgium, in a team that finished fifth," he told Sun Sport.
"He saved four out of eight penalties, but recruitment based purely on stats is risky. Stats don’t show how you react after a mistake, or how you cope with the pressure of Manchester United. That pressure is unlike anywhere else in football.
"Lammens could turn out to be the best signing ever – but right now, it feels like a hopeful one, and that’s not what United need at this moment in time."
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Schmeichel added: "If we’d signed him alongside Martinez, that would have made perfect sense: a proven World Cup winner as number one, with a talented young keeper developing behind him."