Manchester United’s Senne Lammens has boldly lit a fire under Chelsea goalkeeper Mike Penders by declaring himself the rightful heir to Thibaut Courtois’ international throne.
Mike Penders was ever-present for the Ligue 1 outfit, keeping 12 clean sheets across all competitions while anchoring their impressive run to the UEFA Conference League semi-finals.
The 6ft 7in goalkeeper turned heads with his distribution, and Penders was even gifted the title of the best player in the Conference League, despite not winning it.
Chelsea have long-term plans for him and have no intention of sanctioning another loan. Instead, Xabi Alonso intends to immediately integrate Penders into the first-team squad for the upcoming campaign following his stint at the World Cup.
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Senne Lammens praises Mike Penders’ season at Strasbourg
Manchester United goalkeeper has been talking up his chances of replacing Thibaut Courtois when he retires for Belgium, which led him on to talking about Chelsea’s Mike Penders.
Voetbal Belgie has shared the comments.
“If Thibaut Courtois stops as a Red Devil, there will be a fight for his place. I think I have proven myself in the two matches with the national team against Liechtenstein and certainly against the United States.
“I also feel that they have confidence in me here. In that respect, I think I am the number two behind Thibaut.
“But Mike Penders and Maarten Vandevoordt are also two very good goalkeepers, aren’t they? So there will certainly be a big competition. And that’s okay.
“We have to be proud that there are so many good Belgian goalkeepers. In any case, I will do everything I can to take that place when Thibaut quits. But that’s something for the future.”
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Senne Lammens and Mike Penders’ stats compared
The comparison from the recent campaign highlights why the battle for Belgium’s number-one shirt is so fierce.
Senne Lammens enjoyed a brilliant debut season at Manchester United, clinching the Premier League Transfer of the Season award after keeping eight clean sheets.
Meanwhile, Chelsea’s Mike Penders matched that trajectory on loan at Strasbourg. As previously mentioned, the youngster kept 12 clean sheets in all competitions.
The Manchester United man edged Mike Penders in wins (19 to 14) and goals-against average (1.19 to 1.42). However, Penders faced more shots on target (149 to 127) and registered a superior save percentage (71.1% to 69.3%), so it’s hard to separate them.
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