EPL transfer update: Manchester United seal Senne Lammens deal; abort pursuit for Emiliano Martinez

24 hours after Aston Villa's Emiliano Martinez seemed to be on track to make a move to Manchester United, it is Royal Antwerp's goalkeeper Senne Lammens who has been picked up by the Red Devils who always had tbe Belgian as priority. However, with uncertainty surrounding Lammens's signing, Manchester United had agreed personal terms with Martinez too, more like a back-up option in case the priority target didn't work out.

On Monday (September 1), Manchester United announced their mutual transfer agreement with Lammens and Royal Antwerp for a five-year deal amounting to €21m + add-ons. According to transfer pundit David Ornstein, Lammens is already on his way to Old Trafford to complete the pending formalities before the transfer deadline ends. The 23-year-old is set to complete his medicals first before signing on the dotted line at the earliest. Signing a world-class goalkeeper and a lethal striker was in United's bucket list for this transfer window. For the latter, they tried multiple top-level targets but finished second everytime, before settling on the prodigious talent of Benjamin Sesko.

With Andre Onana and Altay Bayindir both failing to live up their goalkeeper duties, pressure was mounting on the United board with manager Ruben Amorim openly vocal about a change in personnel. Onana in particular has been extremely underwhelming behind the sticks and hasn't been an assuring presence for United's backline. Bayindir, while still raw, has also not begun on the right note as he would have expected to. After the dismal 15th place finish last season, the Red Devils are eager to secure European football this season and Amorim will hope that the new signings will help his cause.

United recorded their first win of the season on Saturday (August 30), beating Burnley 3-2 in a thrilling encounter. While three points are always welcome for the mercurial franchise, their defensive lapses and goalkeeping errors are inexplicable. The hope in the Old Trafford camp is that Lammens will solve this crisis.