Is Senne Lammens good enough to be Manchester United's number one? The jury remains out
Senne Lammens’ mistake against Liverpool begs the question - is he the goalkeeper Manchester United need?
In the end, it wasn’t a costly mistake – but the dreadful error of judgement by Senne Lammens that allowed Liverpool to equalise at Old Trafford on Sunday could so easily have been expensive, and it raised the question: Should Lammens be Manchester United’s first-choice goalkeeper next season?
With the club seemingly keen to offload both André Onana and Altay Bayindir this summer, it’s likely that there will be a new shot stopper heading to Old Trafford in the coming transfer window. But has Lammens done enough to earn the benefit of the doubt? Should United sign a back-up, competition or a replacement?
Senne Lammens has been quite good – but is that enough?
It’s probably a compliment to Lammens that he hasn’t really been the subject of much discussion in the media thus far. Since signing from Royal Antwerp for a reported £18m at the end of last summer, the 23-year-old has managed to go about his business without much fuss. Considering how much time Onana spent under the microscope before he was farmed out to Trabzonspor on loan, that’s something of a blessing.
The error against Liverpool, when he passed the ball out from his box and straight into the path of Alexis Mac Allister, was perhaps the first real clanger of his tenure between the sticks. A terrible mistake, both in terms of his judgement of the situation and his execution of the pass, but not one among many.
It has, however, put Lammens in the spotlight for perhaps the first time, and prompts an assessment of his first season before United enter the transfer window – but the fact that he had gotten through his debut season without making a major mistake until May is certainly a point his favour.
Manchester United, however, surely want more from their number one than the mere absence of howlers. That’s a relatively low bar to clear. Lammens arrived in England with some startling statistics to his name after one remarkably impressive season as a starter in Belgium, but also without much experience or a lengthy track record which could serve as proof that he was the real deal rather than a one-season wonder. Has he passed the test?
So far, he has proven to be solid, Sunday’s generous gift aside, but there’s a valid question to be asked about whether solid is enough. Beyond the limited number of errors he’s made, Lammens has yet to truly excel. There hasn’t been a string of world-class saves to showcase his talent. That he hasn’t been talked about too much is a testament to his solidity and capacity to get on with the job without making a fuss, but also to the lack of truly top-class goalkeeping that we’ve witnessed to date.
Lammens’ save percentage of 68.3% is middle of the pack, 14th out of 23 goalkeepers with at least 10 appearances in the Premier League this season. He’s slightly below average for the rate at which he successfully deals with high balls. His distribution, meanwhile, has been poor – even ignoring Sunday’s mistake, his pass completion percentage over both short and long range is right in the basement by top-flight standards.
More promising is the ratio of goals he’s conceded compared with the post-shot xG he’s faced – a wordy statistic which measures how much of a difference a goalkeeper makes to the scoreline after a shot on target. By that measure, he has prevented 2.36 more goals than the ‘average’ goalkeeper would have done. Good, by any standards, but still below six other Premier League goalkeepers.
In short, Lammens isn’t error prone and is an above-average shot stopper, but may lack the capacity to pull off top-draw saves, isn’t especially commanding in the air and has issues with his distribution. He hasn’t been a problem, but it’s debatable whether he has elevated his team. So should Manchester United stick or twist this summer?
Manchester United will surely sign a new goalkeeper – but will they look to replace Lammens?
Any debate about Lammens’ position going forward is essentially philosophical. How good is good enough? When is it right to roll the dice and when is it right to give a capable but not yet exceptional player time to develop?
It’s clearly healthy for Manchester United that they’re in a position in which they don’t desperately need to replace Lammens. After coping with Onana’s eccentricities for some time, maybe the calm Lammens has brought to the role is enough. Signing an ‘upgrade,’ real or perceived, would perhaps be a luxury.
It remains to be seen how luxurious Manchester United can afford to get this summer. They sorely need at least one new midfielder (likely two), a new left-back and some attacking reinforcements. Signing all of those players may not leave all that much room for big splashes in other positions. That alone could keep Lammens out of the firing line.
Equally, United can’t necessarily afford to assume that Lammens is their man for years to come, at least based on the evidence we’ve seen so far. He may be inexperienced, but if there is a sense that he simply doesn’t have the reflexes and technical qualities required to level up down the line, then all he can do is hold down the fort. That, at least, is a judgement that only the coaching staff can truly make.
We’ll learn more about Lammens and his credentials after this weekend, when we see how he copes after making a rick in a big match against a rival. If he remains calm and unflappable after making his first high-profile mistake, it bodes well. If it knocks his confidence and makes him begin to doubt himself, United may have a problem.
It’s unlikely that Manchester United go the entire summer without adding another goalkeeper, and Lammens’ position probably shouldn’t be entirely safe just yet. Lammens has comported himself well, but not proven that he can be a truly elite player – something the club will need if they’re to turn a promising start to life under Michael Carrick into a permanent place in the top four and into trophies. It will be interesting to look at what level of goalkeeper Jason Wilcox and his recruitment team try to sign.