Senne Lammens will remember his first World Cup appearance for all the wrong reasons. The 24-year-old Manchester United goalkeeper came off the bench against Spain in Friday’s quarterfinal, and within minutes, a routine shot slipped through his fingers. That mistake sent Belgium home and set off a wave of criticism that ranged from harsh to borderline cruel.
Lammens replaced an injured Thibaut Courtois in the 71st minute with the score tied 1-1. He looked steady at first. Then Pau Cubarsi, Spain’s young defender, cracked a shot from distance. It wasn’t a rocket. It wasn’t placed in the top corner. It was a fairly routine ball that Lammens spilled directly into the path of Mikel Merino, who tapped in the winner. Belgium was done.
Cameras caught Lammens in tears after the final whistle. Courtois, ever the professional, walked over and put an arm around him. The Real Madrid star later said publicly that Lammens would bounce back, that these things happen to goalkeepers. But Belgian media was not in a forgiving mood.
Le Soir didn’t hold back
One of the country’s major outlets pinned the loss squarely on Lammens. “He simply cannot make a mistake like that on the second goal,” the report said. “He has to hold onto that ball every time. It is a massive blunder by the Manchester United goalkeeper, one that sends us packing. I’m gutted to go home because of a goal like that. I would have preferred a 3–0 thrashing.”
The piece went further, questioning whether Lammens has always had this issue. “Even back at Royal Antwerp, I didn’t always find him reliable,” the reporter wrote. “He was prone to the occasional lapse in concentration.” The article pointed out his goals-against average at United sits around 1.5 per game, as if that stat alone justified the criticism.
Sporza took a gentler route
Another Belgian outlet, Sporza, acknowledged the error without burying the kid. “Players, family members and fans in LA were inconsolable after that painful 2-1 defeat,” the report noted. “Painful for that boy. He will have a long and beautiful career, but I fear that Lammens will carry this with him for a while.” They described it as a moment that “completely tore the Belgian fighting heart apart.” A cold Lammens misjudged the shot, and Merino cleaned up the mess. “Poor, poor, poor Lammens. You truly wouldn’t wish this on anyone with the eyes of the world fixed on you.”
For what it’s worth, Lammens wasn’t supposed to be Belgium’s starter at this tournament. He was the backup. He’s also the guy who won the Premier League’s Signing of the Season award last year after stepping into United’s goal and solving a problem that had haunted the club for years. Fans at Old Trafford still love him. They’ll probably love him even more now, the way fans do when their guy takes a hit on the biggest stage.
But the question now is whether this moment lingers. If Courtois decides to retire from international duty, Lammens becomes the obvious heir. He’s got the talent. He’s got the club pedigree. What he doesn’t have yet is the scar tissue that turns a bad night into fuel instead of a burden. That’s the part nobody can give him. He’ll have to figure it out himself.
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