Amorim picks Bayindir over £21.7 million signing Lammens for Manchester derby
Ruben Amorim confirms Altay Bayindir will start at the Etihad as new arrival Senne Lammens is eased into competition for the long-term No. 1
Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim has confirmed Altay Bayindir will start in goal for the club’s trip to Manchester City, handing a surprise selection over new signing Senne Lammens despite the Belgian arriving for a reported £21.7 million.
Amorim said Bayindir, who has started United’s three Premier League matches this season, will retain the No. 1 spot for the derby while Lammens — 23 and signed from Antwerp — settles into English football and competes for the role over the longer term.
"Altay is going to continue," Amorim said. "Because it's a different league, it's a different country, different training, different goal (for Lammens). So we will try to maintain that and they will fight for the position. So for me, for this game, it's clear that Altay is there. So we believe a lot in our goalkeepers. I believe in Altay, he's ready to play."
The choice leaves Lammens — who only established himself as Antwerp’s first choice last season and has yet to win a senior cap for Belgium — to bide his time. United completed the transfer after assessing several options, including interest in a more experienced keeper such as Emi Martínez and enquiries about loan deals. The club also explored making a goalkeeper move part of broader negotiations, including elements linked to Jadon Sancho’s departure to Aston Villa, before settling on Lammens as a long-term prospect.
The decision follows Andre Onana’s temporary exit from the squad on loan to Trabzonspor, creating an opening in the goalkeeping department. Amorim framed the call as a balance between present needs and future planning, saying United required a goalkeeper with experience but also had to consider long-term potential.
Bayindir’s inclusion preserves continuity after he started against Arsenal, Fulham and Burnley. Amorim said the keepers will "fight for the position" and that the club "has an option that can give us different things in the moment, but also we have a great potential to be our goalkeeper for a lot of years."
United will be without Matheus Cunha, Mason Mount and Diogo Dalot for the Etihad trip after the trio sustained injuries in the 3-2 victory over Burnley before the international break. Cunha had been hopeful of recovering from a hamstring issue but Amorim confirmed they are unavailable for this match.
"They are out for this game. I don't know how long it's going to take. We will manage day by day," Amorim said, adding that the sidelined players were "pushing really hard" in training. He declined to give specific recovery timelines.
Amorim said he expects a difficult match against City and praised Pep Guardiola’s side, saying they are "a top team with the best coach in the league" and that their style is hard to predict because it changes frequently. He added that the current league table is secondary to maintaining United’s principles and focus, and expressed confidence his squad would be competitive despite injuries and the new signing’s absence from the starting XI.
The derby will test Amorim’s decision-making on selection and squad management as Lammens waits to make his full competitive debut for United and Bayindir seeks to maintain the momentum that earned him the start in a high-profile game.