Man Utd have ‘a new hero’ and he’s Fernandes-style

Manchester United won their first three points at Anfield in the Premier League since January 2016 by beating Liverpool 2-1 on Sunday.

The Red Devils had to wait almost a decade before tasting success in the red half of Merseyside, but it comes at an ideal time for Ruben Amorim and his team.

It took around a minute for the away team to take the lead in the match as summer signing Bryan Mbeumo swept the ball into the back of the net.

The Cameroon international has scored three goals in nine appearances since his move to Old Trafford in the summer transfer window and appears to have been a smart addition to the squad.

After missing out on European football and losing the Europa League final to Tottenham Hotspur last season, it was clear the club needed to invest in squad quality.

The Red Devils favored quality over quantity when recruiting during the summer transfer window, as they only made four significant additions to the squad.

Ranking Man Utd’s summer signings

Man United signed Matheus Cunha from Wolverhampton Wanderers for £62.5 million, Benjamin Sesko from RB Leipzig for £66.4 million, Bryan Mbeumo from Brentford for £71 million and goalkeeper Senne Lammens for £18.2 million.

This means the Premier League giants have made three signings on the pitch to strengthen their squad, but all three rank among the club’s nine most expensive signings in its history.

When ranking the three outfield rookies, it’s hard not to put Cunha at the bottom at the moment. It’s not because he was a failure or because he played poorly, but because he has yet to score a single goal or assist for the club.

As you can see in the table above, Sesko and Mbeumo have both scored two Premier League goals for the Red Devils since their big money move to Old Trafford, while Cunha is yet to score 1.53 xG.

Among the three attackers, Mbeumo is also the only player to have recorded an assist for the club. He faced Mason Mount for the opener in the 2-0 win over Sunderland before the international break.

Therefore, we rate the former Brentford star as the pick of the group out of the three rookies on the pitch, with Sesko in second place and Cunha in third, for now. However, there is still plenty of time for this to change as the season progresses and players settle into the team.

Now that we’ve analyzed the summer window signings, it’s only right that we assess how Senne Lammens has started his career at United, as he already looks like he could be a Bruno Fernandes type player.

Man United’s new Bruno Fernandes type player

When United spent £56million to sign the Portugal international in January 2020, few would have expected him to swoop in the way he did.

Bruno has scored 12 goals and provided eight assists in 22 appearances in all competitions during his first six months in England, according to Transfermarkt, which has been a remarkable start to life at Old Trafford.

The United skipper has since racked up 100 goals and 87 assists in 299 appearances for the club in all competitions, according to Transfermarkt, with his latest assist coming to Harry Maguire against Liverpool.

Maguire and Bruno combined to seal United’s three points on Sunday, but it was Lammens who Amorim should thank for his performance between the sticks.

The Belgian goalkeeper has made a blistering start to life in goal for United, in the same way Bruno made a blistering start to life in midfield for the club in 2020.

A first-choice goalkeeper is a crucial position for a top team. Manchester City have Gianluigi Donnarumma. Liverpool have Alisson, when he is fit. Real Madrid have Thibaut Courtois.

United have been stung by poor goalkeepers in recent seasons, such as Altay Bayindir and Andre Onana, but Lammens seems to be someone they can rely on in goal.

The Royal Antwerp signing avoided 2.19 goals in his first two matches, conceding one goal, and made several key saves against Liverpool, surpassing Maguire, who did not win a single ground duel, according to Sofascore.

The United centre-back may have scored the winner, but his blushes were spared in the first half when Lammens brilliantly denied Alexander Isak, after the Swedish striker got the better of Maguire and Luke Shaw.

Lammens’ bright start to life at Old Trafford could also be a sign of things to come from him, if his statistics from the 2024/25 campaign are to be believed, during which he was hailed as “phenomenal” by talent scout Jacek Kulig. As it turns out, Kulig called him the “new hero” for Old Trafford after his performance on Sunday.

As you can see in the table above, the Belgian titan prevented a staggering 15.57 goals with his shot saves in the Pro League last season, around nine goals more than any goalkeeper in the Premier League.

After just two appearances in the division, according to Sofascore, Lammens ranks third among the Premier League’s best goalkeepers for goals avoided, behind Dean Henderson and Robin Roefs.

It illustrates the immense impact the 23-year-old goalkeeper has had since his debut against Sunderland, as he helped his side potentially earn four more points with his impressive saves against the Black Cats and Liverpool.

United and Amorim will now hope that Lammens can continue to shine and earn points for United between the sticks, in the same way Bruno continued to earn points with goals and assists after his excellent start to 2020.