Being a goalkeeper for the Red Devils has become a deal with the Devil itself. If you are a promising goalkeeper, you might want to try to safeguard the Man United net and get paid handsome wages. The consequences of said deal could be inopportune errors, endless trolling, loss of confidence and maybe a career-ending spell which would mean you might have to start learning Arabic soon.
Andre Onana is the best example of the post-De Gea goalkeeper conundrum at Man United. David de Gea was a legend between the sticks for the Old Trafford faithful but his replacement, Onana has been anything but. The ex-Inter Milan goalie, who reached the Champions League final with them in the 22/23 season, was then United boss Erik Ten Hag’s primary choice for David De Gea’s replacement. After a troublesome two years at United, where he failed to meet expectations, new manager Ruben Amorim replaced him with backup goalie Altay Bayindir for the first two Premier League matches of the new season. After Onana started in Man United’s shocking defeat at fourth-division Grimsby Town, United splashed a sum of £18 for Royal Antwerp goalkeeper Senne Lammens.
The 23-year-old tall, lanky Belgian will be expected to take over from the misfiring Bayindir and Onana duo and will hope to become the mainstay for the Red Devils’ goal. You would not be faulted to have never heard of him before. Hailing from the Club Brugge Academy, Lammens joined Antwerp in 2023 and became a fan favourite after saving four penalties for his team last season, frequently being named the club’s player of the month.
His starring role in Antwerp made him the choice for many top clubs, and Manchester United had to wrestle with Aston Villa and Galatasaray for his signature. While United was also involved with Villa over a deal for World Cup winner Emiliano “Dibu” Martinez, they pulled the plug on that deal and instead chose to invest on the young prospect.
Now, with the social media reveal done, Senne Lammens seems to be gaining new fans. His simple demeanour and lack of style has made him the target of playful banter from United fans.
It's not as straightforward as you think! 💬 pic.twitter.com/6ZNf4pOWQ4
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) September 2, 2025
One fan makes claims that the goalkeeper has “got the aura of an engineering student”, while another fan replied, “No aura goalkeeper, African/french defensive midfielder and Brazilian winger profiles have a 99% hit rate.”
No aura goalkeeper, African/french defensive midfielder and Brazilian winger profiles have a 99% hit rate
— Siddiqi Saab (@M_Siddiqi2000) September 2, 2025
The young goalkeeper does not seem the most media-trained personality, with charisma dipping from head to toe, but we know excellence cannot be conjured up in social media followers.
Some fans started joking that Lammens looked like a scientist, while some even went as far as to say he looked like Gale Boetticher, played by Canadian actor David Costabile, a minor supporting character familiar to fans of Breaking Bad. Well, if you’ve watched Breaking Bad, you’d know that Gale, a meth-cooking chemist hired by Gustavo Fring (Giancarlo Esposito) to partner protagonist Walter White (Bryan Cranston) to manufacture methamphetamine, doesn’t have the best of fates reserved for him.
No aura💔 guy looks like a scientist https://t.co/OcBHDc0Z8s
— R. (@Rzj77_) September 1, 2025
Well, to be fair, Lammens does look a wee bit similar to a younger Gale Boetticher.
Fans are excited to see their new goalkeeper, who’ll wear the no.31 jersey, between the United goalposts soon.
