Manchester United have three imperfect options worth £66.3million vs Man City

Manchester United have three imperfect options worth £66.3million vs Man City

Man Utd will return from the international break to face Man City in the Manchester derby at the Etihad.

Ruben Amorim pictured at the Etihad last season. (Image: Tom Jenkins)

Manchester United submitted a deal sheet to complete the signing of Senne Lammens.

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The summer transfer window closed at 7pm on Monday for Premier League clubs, but an extra two hours were granted to the sides who sumbitted a deal sheet to complete late deals.

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United sources confirmed everything was on track to sign Lammens, despite the deadline passing. The club formally announced the transfer at 10pm and fans were relieved to see a goalkeeper come in.

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Royal Antwerp needed to cash in on Lammens due to their financial situation. United agreed a deal of £18.2million, plus add-ons, to land the goalkeeper and he signed a five-year contract.

Lammens said: "I am extremely proud to be joining Manchester United, it is a real dream come true. The past few years have been an amazing journey, it’s now ended in an incredible destination and hopefully the beginning of something special.

"You can feel the positive atmosphere that is being created here, and I know that I can make a real impact at the club in the coming years.

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"I cannot wait to get to know my teammates and begin working with Ruben and the coaching staff. This is the perfect place to keep developing, grow together with this exciting team and achieve my career objectives.”

Director of football Jason Wilcox added: “Senne is an excellent young goalkeeper with great potential; we are delighted that he has chosen to join Manchester United after significant interest from a number of clubs.”

The conversation about where Lammens fits into the goalkeeper pecking order began before his official arrival, as he has a huge opportunity to claim first-choice status at Old Trafford.

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Altay Bayindir has started the season as the first choice and made mistakes against Arsenal and Burnley. Andre Onana was recalled to the starting team against Grimsby and he was at fault for their second goal.

Ruben Amorim has a dilemma over which goalkeeper starts against Manchester City after the international break. Will he throw Lammens into the deep end? Will he persist with Bayindir? Could Onana return?

Senne Lammens secured his move to United on deadline day. (Image: Manchester United/Manchester United via Getty Images)

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All three goalkeeper options will be considered, but they're all imperfect. Lammens is unproven in the Premier League and starting him in the Manchester derby, one of the most watched and scrutinised games of the season, could potentially set him up to fail after only just signing for the club.

If Lammens disappointed on his debut against City, he would face an uphill battle from the start of his United career, so Amorim might want to protect him with a long-term view in mind.

On the other hand, the dream start for any new United signing is to perform well in the Manchester derby, and perhaps Lammens will be able to shrug off the pressure to sparkle at the Etihad.

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Amorim must decide whether Lammens will be able to cut it straight away. The bar is low for Lammens to impress considering how poor Bayindir and Onana have been and it will be difficult for him to be worse.

Still, there is obviously an element of risk with Lammens and Amorim knows what to expect with Bayindir and Onana, which might be enough to tip the scales in favour of the pair.

United have three senior goalkeepers - excluding Tom Heaton - battling for one place in the team, raising the possibility of either Onana or Bayindir being sold to a league whose window is still open (Saudi Arabia and Turkey).

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Amorim's selection for the opening games of the season suggests Bayindir will start against City if Lammens is overlooked. Onana has been demoted since returning from injury and seems to have lost Amorim's trust.

If it's a choice between Bayindir and Lammens, the latter should get the nod for the derby.

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