There is a strong sense of ‘Project 150’ around Manchester United’s decision to pay £18.1m for 23-year-old goalkeeper Senne Lammens.
The plan to aim for the Premier League title in 2028, the 150th anniversary of the club that started life as Newton Heath and turned into Manchester United, was first outlined by chief executive Omar Berrada to staff in September 2024.
Berrada doubled down on the aim in June this year in an interview with the respected United We Stand fanzine, stating: “Why not aim for it?”
The overall strategy of building for a better future was behind the decision taken less than 12 hours before the transfer window closed.
United told Lammens to board a private jet and fly to Manchester, rather than ask Aston Villa’s Emiliano Martinez to head up the M6 to complete the move he had hoped would happen virtually since last season ended.
Sources say the dilemma was straightforward.
Firstly, United know significant improvement is required this season after the debacle 2024-25 became. But ‘Project 150’ is the bigger plan Berrada and the club ownership are striving to achieve.
United are respectful of Martinez. They accept the Argentina international is proven in the Premier League.
He has played at the highest levels of the game and won the World Cup. He is not mistake free by any means though and made more errors leading to shots last season (6) than United’s Andre Onana (4).
But Martinez has the personality to deal with that at a time when even head coach Ruben Amorim says: “It is hard to be a Manchester United goalkeeper in this moment.”
Lammens is at the other end of the experience scale. The 6ft 4in stopper has 93 appearances to his name, only 52 of which have come in the Belgian Pro League.
His single outing in the Champions League came in Royal Antwerp’s 2-0 defeat by Porto in November 2023. He was picked for the Belgium senior squad for the first time in March and has yet to win a full cap.
However, United’s data analysis, something minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe has been determined to significantly improve, pointed at someone who warranted closer attention.
Club sources say that in key metrics, such as claimed crosses, shot stopping, preventing goals from rebounds and mistakes, or rather the lack of them, Lammens rates exceptionally highly.
They also say Lammens made more saves than any other goalkeeper in Europe’s top 10 leagues and made the most ‘progressive’ passes for any goalkeeper under the age of 23.
In the statement confirming his arrival, director of football Jason Wilcox said Lammens was the subject of “significant interest from a number of clubs”.
Crucially, when United reach Berrada’s ‘Project 150’ point, Lammens will be 26 and should be moving into his prime. Martinez will be 35.
It could be argued the Old Trafford hierarchy faced a similar dilemma with another Aston Villa player, Ollie Watkins, and Benjamin Sesko. They went for Sesko.
The clear difference is United had already signed two ‘oven ready’ Premier League players in Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo for the attacking area they prioritised going into the summer.
Once the flurry of deals put together over the final few days of the window began to take shape, and having assessed the mistakes made by Altay Bayindir and Andre Onana in the preceding games, they decided to make a further addition to their goalkeeping roster at the expense of strengthening their midfield.
Lammens was not a new name on United’s radar. They were first linked with him last season and spoke to Royal Antwerp earlier in the summer.
The Belgian was keen to make the move from that point. It was the middle of last week when negotiations began between the clubs again and the deal was put in place that was activated on Monday morning.
United know there is a risk attached.
While United could still offload either Onana or Bayindir – clubs in the Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, Greece, Turkey and Saudi Arabia among others can still sign players until their respective deadlines close – the specifics remain unknown around who will be Amorim’s first-choice goalkeeper.
Aside from the data, Lammens has strong recommendations.
Thibaut Courtois, one of Belgium’s greatest keepers, rates him highly. So too Simon Mignolet, a former team-mate at Club Brugge.
“His shot stopping is his biggest quality,” says HLN.BE’s Royal Antwerp reporter Axel Brisart.
“He made some great saves and has great reflexes on the line.
“He is very proactive and likes to come for the ball. He has great feet and his passing is a really big weapon for any team looking to put some tempo into their play.”
Sesko has been eased into life at Old Trafford with a couple of substitute appearances in the Premier League to go with his 90-minute outing at Grimsby in the EFL Cup that left him with severe cramp at the final whistle.
Amorim cannot do the same with Lammens. Because of that shock defeat at Blundell Park, United will not play a cup match until January.
Their next game is at Manchester City on 14 September. Is it conceivable Amorim could give a debut to someone so inexperienced in such a big game?
