Not only Dalot – Ashley Young insists 3/10 Man Utd star ‘hasn’t looked the same’ this seaso

Manchester United are starting to worry about Senne Lammens and his regressing form since the start of the season.

On Sunday, the Red Devils pulled off two comebacks in the space of 90 minutes against Aston Villa, who saw a two-goal lead evaporate twice.

Joshua Zirkzee and Patrick Dorgu both came off the bench to score in added time, much to the delight of the Old Trafford home crowd, who celebrated a 4-4 draw, even though it left the club in shocking 18th place in the table after 10 rounds.

Unfortunately for Diogo Dalot, he was identified as the main culprit, with fans and observers blaming him for two of Villa’s goals. The Portuguese full-back couldn’t close down Alysson on the first goal, and he gave away the spot-kick that allowed the visitors to retake the lead after the break.

In her post-match player ratings, The Sun journalist Katherine Walsh gave Dalot an abysmal 2/10 grade following a performance that saw him ‘brutally’ cheered off the pitch by his own supporters.

Nevertheless, Sammens didn’t fare better, as his performance between the sticks earned him a 3/10 rating. Walsh described his outing as his worst since joining the club in the summer of 2025.

The Belgian goalkeeper was in the right place to stop Alysson’s shot on the opener, but the ball went between his legs. Moreover, he failed to properly parry the shot away on the second goal, which allowed Nicolas Jackson to pounce on the rebound.

Hence, Ashley Young noted that Lammens has been a mere shadow of himself this season

“On the opening goal, Diogo Dalot has to defend his goal and slide in,” said the former Aston Villa and Man Utd winger during his appearance on Sky Sports (via BBC).

“The goalkeeper doesn’t do himself any glory. Since the World Cup, he made that mistake and he hasn’t looked the same.”

Young was referring to the blunder the 24-year-old committed after coming on for the injured Thibaut Courtois in the World Cup quarter-final against Spain, which allowed Mikel Merino to score the later winner for the eventual champions.

Perhaps Young was right to point out that World Cup mistake for its significance. After all, Lammens was coming off a superb first campaign at Old Trafford, and was named the Premier League’s Best New Signing last season, especially given his low cost (£20 million).

However, that howler certainly isn’t the only factor behind the shot-stopper’s worrying dip.

It should be remembered that goalkeepers tend to inspire confidence from their defenders, and vice versa. But once mutual trust is lost, it could all collapse at the back, and this appears to be the case at Man Utd.

This season, Lisandro Martinez and other MUFC defenders have been shaky, to say the least. The mix-up between the Argentine centre-back and Lammens that led to the comical own goal against Fulham perfectly illustrated the shambolic situation.

Therefore, we cannot expect Lammens to be sharp and confident between the sticks while everything around him is falling apart. So unless Michael Carrick (or whoever replaces him) can find a permanent solution for the leaky backline, the Belgian international’s form is unlikely to dramatically improve.