Man United’s superstitious shot-stopper who does NOT like watching football: Senne Lammens on adapting to life in Manchester, fighting at set-pieces and the American sport he is obsessed with

It’s just as well Senne Lammens was wearing an all-yellow kit amid the scrum of red and blue shirts, otherwise there were moments on Monday night when Manchester United’s besieged goalkeeper might have disappeared from view altogether.

With Everton players crowding around Lammens at set-pieces in search of an equaliser, and United piling in to protect him, the Belgian’s penalty box turned into all-too-familiar scene in the Premier League these days which he likens to a war-zone.

Lammens stood strong even though he admitted afterwards having to step behind his goal-line just to get a run-up to punch the ball clear in the face of Everton’s aerial bombardment at the Hill Dickinson Stadium.

The 23-year-old was unflappable and calm under pressure as Michael Carrick’s side moved back into the top four with a 1-0 win, just as he has been since stepping assuredly into United’s starting line-up in October.

It was arguably his best performance yet, even though curiously there weren’t that many saves to make. ‘Bloody brilliant’ was the verdict of Everton boss David Moyes.

Two days on and did Lammens have any bruises to show for his heroics?

‘Not really, no, it’s actually been quite alright,’ he says. ‘I mean, physically it was a big battle, a big game, so I’m still recovering from that. But cuts and bruises, not really, no.

‘It’s just the way it is. It’s the Premier League. It’s been like this all season. They always said to me that it was the most physical and that’s the biggest difference. A bit of a war (in the penalty box).

‘It’s always been one of my strengths – even in Belgium which is less physical but the principles are all the same – so sometimes I like the challenge as well.

‘Now there are more bodies in front of you, but my team-mates help me out as well blocking the guys away from me. You have to be big and not easily pushed around, so I think that’s also important. My physical features are positive for those kind of situations.’

At 6ft 4in, Lammens isn’t easy to bully, as Everton discovered. After giving his first sit-down interview to the English press at a school on the outskirts of Manchester, he was straight back to Carrington for more gym work and recovery sessions, not leaving the training ground until after 6pm on Wednesday night.

‘The physical demands are quite big, so you’re trying to get yourself ready for that,’ he adds. ‘But, naturally, I’ve always been, how can you say, a bit bigger, with a bit more weight wise. So it’s also a positive thing for me the way the Premier League is.

‘I think also that’s why Manchester United were interested in me because they knew how it was going to be. To be honest, if it continues like this, just the physicality in general and those corners, I sometimes even like it, I have to say. I enjoy getting out of my comfort zone a little bit and dealing with those situations.

‘Of course it can get too much sometimes. There have to be certain rules. Maybe there are some situations where the goalkeeper could have been protected more.

‘But it’s not that only one team does it. Everyone’s trying to get as many goals as they can, so they try new stuff. We do it as well sometimes, making it hard for the goalkeeper. We’ve scored lots of goals from it, so I understand fully why we do it. You just have to deal with it.’

Lammens has been dealing with it all remarkably well since moving to Old Trafford from Royal Antwerp on deadline day in a deal worth £18.2million, plus £3.5m in add-ons. At that price, he has to be one of the signings of the season.

United wanted a replacement for Andre Onana, and Ruben Amorim was known to favour Aston Villa’s No 1 Emi Martinez.

However, goalkeeping scout Tony Coton had watched Lammens extensively and pushed for the young Belgian, even though he had only been first-choice at Antwerp for one season and is yet to win a senior cap for his country.

In fact, Coton argued that Lammens’ inexperience and down-to-earth nature would be a better fit for the United dressing-room than a bigger ego like Martinez.

The result was that both goalkeepers were kept waiting anxiously on deadline day before Lammens got the green light to board a private jet to Manchester.

‘I had to wait for a little bit, but I trusted in the move and in myself,’ says Lammens. ‘Even if it didn’t work out, I wouldn’t mind being longer in Antwerp if that give me a better situation. But United was always my No 1 option in my head, and then I was really happy on the last day it came through. 

‘I had quite a while contact with United, especially in the end phase. I think Tony Coton was probably one of the biggest ones.

‘I had a good relationship from the beginning. He was always honest and open with me. He gave me a lot of confidence that it was the right step for me, and everything he said has come true.’

Lammens had to wait seven games for his debut as Altay Bayindir began the season in goal and the erratic Onana was shipped out on loan to Trabzonspor. From the moment he came into the team against Sunderland, the former Club Brugge keeper has been almost flawless.

A good shot-stopper who is dominant in the air and comfortable kicking with either foot, he was just what United needed and the fans knew it instantly. ‘Are you Schmeichel in disguise?’ they sang on his first appearance at Old Trafford.

‘The best feeling there was in the beginning,’ he recalls. ‘They gave me even more confidence to keep going and to make the steps I did after that.

‘There wasn’t really a clear path for me. I needed a little bit of time to adapt, especially to this league and this quality. So those first weeks were vital.

‘It wasn’t really spoken when I was going have my chance, I needed to prove myself in training. But I knew it was going to be there, if it was in the league or in the cups. The way it went was probably ideal for me. I got my chance and I took it, and since then I haven’t really looked back. I couldn’t really imagine it going any better.

‘I always knew that I was going be ready for it. Every time I’ve had to be ready to prove myself a little bit, I always did it, so it is just the same thing now again.

‘Pressure is what you make it. I try to just not really think about it too much and relax and then it’s not too bad for me, to be honest.

‘You know it’s Manchester United, one of the biggest clubs in the world, but also you have to look through that a little bit. It’s still game of football. The game isn’t that much different. Of course the quality is better, you have to trust in yourself. There’s a reason I’m here, that I made the move.

‘Sometimes at United, I don’t really have a to make a lot of saves. It’s a different kind of goalkeeping, but it’s also sometimes the most difficult when there are only one or two saves to be made.

‘But I take a lot of pride in doing the other things well. Maybe not always the box-office stuff or the things people look at first.

‘I take pride in being all-round and not really having any flaws. You don’t always have the biggest work to do, but it’s staying focused and not giving anything to the opponent – not easy things, at least.

‘I spoke a lot about it with Tom Heaton, who’s helping me in my time here as well. He talks about not giving things away and keeping your team in the game. If you want to have a long career, especially in these kind of clubs, they have to count on you and you have to be dependable.’

Adapting to being Manchester United’s No 1 off the pitch has been more of a challenge for the boy from the quiet town of Zottegem in East Flanders who is the antithesis of a football star.

Lammens smiles as he remembers emerging from a quiet dinner with his long-time girlfriend Vanessa Herssens at The Ivy in Manchester to be met by flashbulbs.

‘That was one of the more special moments. I mean special, like, I couldn’t believe it really. It’s not always the best feeling. They weren’t too bad, but especially for my girlfriend as well. It was the first time and a pretty strange feeling.

‘They warned me that Manchester United is a different animal, especially social media wise. I mean, it’s all positive now, but I know sometimes it can get negative fast so I don’t really want to be looking towards it too much.

‘I’m just a normal guy and that is also something I try to show the world. Sometimes there are people who have that mindset and that lifestyle a little bit different than me, and there’s nothing wrong with that.

‘So it’s a bit like my character in general and how I want to be seen next to the pitch. I don’t only want to be looked at as a football player, but also just a normal person with his own beliefs and stuff to do next to it.’

When Daily Mail Sport spoke to Rik De Mil, Lammens youth-team coach at Brugge, he described a humble young man who liked to discuss economics with him. ‘Senne is an atypical football player, not penthouses and Euros,’ said De Mil.

Brian Vandenbussche, his goalkeeper coach at Antwerp, had concerns about Lammens’ laid-back character so he put together motivational videos of the young keeper in action to ‘bring out the fire’ in him.

Both remember seeing him working out in the gym after midnight, such was his determination to succeed, just as United insiders say he regularly trains on days off and makes detailed notes after sessions.

Then there are the quirky superstitions. Lammens doesn’t like family or friends wishing him luck keeping a clean sheet in case they jinx him, and likes to put his water bottle in a specific place in the goal.

Because of his dedication to the job, however, Lammens doesn’t like to watch football at home and prefers US sports like the NBA.

‘I don’t really, to be honest,’ he says. ‘Everything revolves around football on a daily basis, so you want to switch off a little bit mentally.

‘I’m a big sports guy. I love watching other sports and other athletes do their thing, especially how they prepare the game. With the NBA, for example, you can learn a lot from LeBron James.

‘I read quite a lot about other athletes and about mentality. There are lots of good books about dealing with adversity, stress or stuff like that, which can also help you in this kind of industry.’

Lammens has been reading Tiger Woods’ autobiography and says his favourite is The Alchemist, a book about a young Spanish boy who dreams of finding treasure in Egypt.

To promote World Book Day, he was speaking at Partington Central Academy Primary School after surprising the children. The United keeper took part in a Q&A session before joining in some playground games.

‘It’s a bit new for me, but it’s also probably one of my best feelings when you get into those classes and see all those children cheering for you with open eyes. They don’t believe it,’ says Lammens. ‘Because I also was there once in my life. It’s not that long ago.’

The Manchester United Foundation is hosting a children’s book appeal throughout March, encouraging fans to donate new and pre-loved books to children in need. The foundation aims to develop and improve the wellbeing and life skills of children aged 5-11.