Heaven and Mazraoui: Lammens delivers verdict on United duo
Heaven and Mazraoui: Lammens delivers verdict on United duo Manchester United picked up their sixth clean sheet of the season against Chelsea on Saturday, 18 April, in the Premier League. The Red Devils were facing a defensive crisis ahead of the game, with Lisandro Martinez and Harry Maguire suspended. The Premier League giants were also without Matthijs de Ligt and Leny Yoro due to injuries.
The situation prompted caretaker manager Michael Carrick to field an unconventional centre-back pairing of Ayden Heaven and Noussair Mazraoui at Stamford Bridge. It was Heaven’s first start under Carrick, while Mazraoui was also operating in an unfamiliar position. However, the duo were solid at Stamford Bridge, with Chelsea registering 20 shots on the night, only one of which was on target.
While the hosts did hit the frame of the goal on two occasions, Senne Lammens largely had a quiet outing, picking up his fourth clean sheet since Carrick’s arrival. The Belgian custodian has now paid tribute to the backline for stepping up amid a host of absentees. Senne Lammens Stats: 2025/26 Season Source: Transfermarkt .
Complete trust in the backline Speaking to The National , Lammens insisted that he had full trust in the makeshift centre-back pairing. He said: “It’s not always the easiest. We also had it a couple times where players came in and came out this season, especially at centre-back.
It’s a position where you need a little bit of confidence, where you need a little bit of like getting used to it. ” “So it’s difficult when you’re not playing sometimes for a couple of months or a couple of games and you have to come in. Of course, I have the biggest trust in them because you see it every day in training and that’s also the biggest change for me as well.