Ferdinand singles out Lammen's character and key element making him a success at Man Utd

Rio Ferdinand has singled out Senne Lammens' character and one element which has made him so successful at Manchester United this season.

The 23-year-old goalkeeper arrived at Old Trafford from Antwerp on deadline day during last summer’s transfer window and has enjoyed an impressive debut campaign for the Red Devils.

So far this season, Lammens has made 30 appearances and has been a regular starter since making his debut against Sunderland in early October.

He played a key role in United’s goalless stalemate against the Black Cats on Saturday, making a low stop in a one-on-one with Noah Sadiki in the opening minutes and a solid save to push away Brian Brobbey’s effort in the second half.

Former United defender Ferdinand praised Lammens on his podcast ‘Rio Ferdinand Presents’ and backed him to keep improving.

“The calmness that he’s brought, the amount of saves that he’s made and the difference-making that he’s made with this team, I don’t think you can put a number on that,” Ferdinand said.

“He’s been superb and he’s young. That’s what I love about him, he’s young, he’s still going to be getting more experiences and he’s only going to get better from now on.

“I don’t think it matters how good or bad he plays, I think he’ll be the same level – very level-headed and he won’t get out of his pram too much about anything.

“I think he’s one for the next 10 years at Manchester United, he’s going to be the number one. He’s someone again, got a definite great foundation to start building from what he’s shown this season.”

Saturday’s game saw limited chances for United, who only really tested Sunderland late on when Matheus Cunha’s strike was saved, but Ferdinand is not too concerned about the team’s performance.

He said: “We can’t expect perfection everywhere. Sunderland have caused havoc and trouble for a lot of teams at the Stadium of Light, that’s been a fact all season.

“So to expect that we’re going to go there and dismantle them without even a blink of the eye I think is, one, disrespectful to Sunderland, but two, we’re expecting too much of Manchester United in that sense for where we are.”