Paul Scholes has questioned whether Manchester United goalkeeper Senne Lammens is good enough to help the club challenge for the Premier League title.
Lammens, who joined United from Royal Antwerp for £18.1 million in 2025, has established himself as Michael Carrick’s first-choice goalkeeper. But Scholes believes there remains uncertainty over whether the Belgian can reach the standard set by the goalkeepers behind previous championship-winning sides.
Paul Scholes questions Senne Lammens’ title credentials
Speaking on The Good, The Bad and The Football podcast, the former United midfielder said a team could not realistically compete for major honours without a top-class goalkeeper.
“What team have you seen win the Premier League without a top-class goalkeeper?” Scholes said.
“Lammens might be that; I don’t know; I think the jury’s probably still out on that, and then you build from the back four, like Arsenal.”
Scholes pointed to David Raya at Arsenal, Alisson at Liverpool and the influence of Peter Schmeichel and Edwin van der Sar during United’s most successful eras.
“You need a top-class goalkeeper,” he said. “They’ve all got brilliant, brilliant goalkeepers. You start from the back, of course you do.”
He added: “Whether Michael has just got to be patient and wait for that, I don’t know.”
The comments came as the podcast focused on United’s derby defeat by Manchester City. Lammens’ early-season figures have also left the debate open, with the goalkeeper conceding six goals in three Premier League appearances and making nine saves from 15 shots on target, giving him a 60 per cent save rate. He has yet to keep a league clean sheet this season.
However, dismissing Lammens at this stage would be premature. The 24-year-old has been operating behind a United defence that has not looked settled, while defensive structure can have a significant bearing on a goalkeeper’s record.
There have been positive moments, too. Lammens kept a clean sheet in United’s 4-0 Champions League win over Sabah and made four saves during the 2-2 draw at Everton.
The question for United is whether their promising goalkeeper can develop into the elite figure Scholes believes is essential to a title-winning team.
