The point of loans is development. He has not played in a top 5 league or in Europe. So therefore he can still develop more. What is the point of keeping him at the club to warm the bench when he can instead develop at a higher level? Even a loan to a promoted PL club would be better than warming the bench
Radek Vítek | 2025/26 Performances | on loan to Bristol City
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The point of loans is development. He has not played in a top 5 league or in Europe. So therefore he can still develop more. What is the point of keeping him at the club to warm the bench when he can instead develop at a higher level? Even a loan to a promoted PL club would be better than warming the bench
Not sure how many different posters need to inform you that you're going against the conventional wisdom, specifically on this point. Game time for all players is key but specifically for goalkeepers as we only field one at a time. Not like a CB who can be bled in alongside an experienced partner.
I've already addressed all of the previous issues. He is presently on his 3rd loan. How many additional loans do you think a player requires before they are deemed sufficiently developed to be a backup keeper for any club ? Give me a number.
Also, why can't a player (following 3 pervious loans) now develop at his club ? Plenty of opportunities throughout the year in cup fixtures,, which is something United have previously done during the preceding decade - main keeper plays in league games, backup gets plenty of starts in cup ties.
I understand where you are coming from and I think if we had European football this year it may have been enough games to warrant him staying, especially with the new league format. But we're already out of one cup competition and it remains to be seem how we progress in the other.
Seems a very likeable fellow though and is already connecting well with the Robin's fans. I think he'll have a good career.
Good point. And to clarify, I wasn't suggesting bring him back right now. It was more a suggestion he should be ready to return next year, which after two full loan seasons, would be quite a lengthy development spell away from his own club.
No, you're not reading the information we are trying to convey to you.
Those three loans being:
EFL League Two
Austrian Bungesliga
EFL Championship
They show excellent progression but they don't scream "he's ready for the first team spot at Real Madrid", do they?
I don't think it's a numerical thing. I think he aces it in the CH and earns himself a chance in the PL. If he looks solid in the PL he's ready to come back to United and challenge for the starting spot. Incidentally, if he does that by the end of next season it would mean he's raw but with proven potential and back at United as the same age as Lammens is now. That is to say, he's not losing time. 23 (he's currently 21, Lammens is 23) is still extremely young for a GK.
To split this into two points:
To state this clearly, number of loans doesn't matter to me. If he'd been recalled last Jan and gone back out on loan to a different Austrian team who offered us more money would the FOUR loans count for much? Does it matter?
You keep saying "develop at his club" but he's a 21 y/o GK who's playing regularly in the Championship and, by all accounts, performing very well. Do you think sitting on the Manchester United bench is better for "development" than playing regularly at a relatively high level? If so, no need for us to go back and forth on it, I disagree and I think you're going against conventional wisdom here. Playing regular football at a high level that is challenging is, conventionally, the best way to improve a player.
We are in only one cup this season and, in recent seasons, we've played Onana at all times. People talk about cup games but a full FA Cup / EFL Cup run is a maximum of like 15 games? How is that anywhere near enough to develop compared to a 40(?) game CH season (and cups, FWIW)? Unless you're proposing we play him in Europe, too, and assuming we go far in Europe?
The only time we split games anywhere near that level with a young goalkeeper was with late-era DDG and Henderson. In that case it was clear that we were looking to move on from DDG and Henderson was being bled into the no1 spot. I don't think that precedent (which, again, I only recall happening once) applies in the same way with Lammens and Vitek.
Lammens hasnt nailed down the spot yet and if he doesnt by january we should consider bringing him back in the winter window.
as the saying in Bristol goes “it’s easy to keep a clean sheet here if you make your sister sleep in a separate room.”
let’s wait and see what he does at a real club.
let’s wait and see what he does at a real club.
Championship is a good league for his development. If we don’t see him in our first team plans, at least there’s decent money that could be generated.
GK is a tricky position. The player himself likely prefers to go on loan to develop to become a no.1 elsewhere. There is very little glory to be a back up GK for a young GK even at top club. Dean Henderson situation happened because he was not given the chance to become the starting GK that he thought he did earn, and hes unhappy about being just back up GK.
Even with cup games, unless this GK is very experienced, managers would still reluctantly to use young GK in cup games. GK mistakes have more impact in the result. Even club with no ambition in the cups and known to develop players wouldn’t give young GK chance out of pity.
So Lammens has the rest of this season to make the starting GK position his. If there is doubt, the manager would have a decision to make whether keeping Vitek next season and have him dispute this starting position or sell/loan him out and pocket the profit.
If she’s not there, won’t it be easier to soil your sheets with the 6 knuckle shuffle?
Do you live downstream from a nuclear power plant?
the average bristolian gives up and goes to bed after tugging on one of their fingers for about 25 minutes.
He is fine where he is, I don’t get the whole let’s get him back to the club to sit on the bench instead of playing week in / week out
It’s only from one poster. Everyone else agrees with the normal process of letting young keepers go and get experience.
Standard goalkeeping IMO.
Standard goalkeeping consistently is the hardest skill to master. The way he comes out and attempts to command his area is a very difficult for many goalkeepers to master.
Fair enough but he was always favourite to claim those.
The bar has been set very low at our club due to Onana but we should not get over enthused as soon as we see a player wearing our colours just doing basic goalkeeping as that should be a minimum expectation.
As far as I'm concerned, the bar was set by Schmeichel and then Van der Sar. And we haven't had a keeper of that calibre since imo. The best keepers for me are those who have the ability to command their area and dominate against aerial balls, which is a skill that is extremely under-rated.
There's more development to come from Vitek due to his age, but he's already the most dominant keeper on the club's books as far as dominating against the aerial ball and his shot stopping is also good and will get better with more game time.
I'm looking forward to seeing how Lammens develops.
We haven't and very few other teams have either
Indeed, a couple of good saves at the feet of the strikers and a couple of decent saves that you'd expect to be saved 99/100 times, wasn't really under any pressure
Of course very few teams have had those types of keepers. But it should always be the aim of top teams to find those profiles that are well rounded both at saving shots and claiming high balls. It's why the likes of Schmeichel, VdS, Neuer, Courtois etc stand out from just your run of the mill shot stopper who is then average at other aspects of goalkeeping.
Hopefully both keepers can develop to a high level which would be a good headache to have.
Struber the Bristol City head coach seems to be surprised by how good Vitek is at his age and hopefully he can continue on a upwards trajectory.
Struber: "Very impressed, very impressed, and sometimes even a little bit surprised. He’s 21 years old, and he looks like an outstanding, experienced Championship goalkeeper.
"In this direction, he’s highly talented - I’ve told you this many times - high potential, and today, again, we can see the consistency in his performances. This makes him very, very interesting for sure.”
https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/sport...erhard-struber-makes-surprised-radek-10582677
He's absolutely class.
What are the odds that he goes on loan to a decent German team next season, we sell him to Madrid for £18m and he goes on to be the next Courtois?
What are the odds that he goes on loan to a decent German team next season, we sell him to Madrid for £18m and he goes on to be the next Courtois?
Agreed - if we were a topteam where we could expect to easily go far in both domestic cups and at least play in one of the european cups, then we could guarantee Vitek a lot of starts - as things are now, we can't.
Its nice to see that he scores high statistically on measures like crosses that he catches and numbers of defensive actions outside the box. Makes him sound like a really proactive goalkeeper.
That was always a thing I did not like with de Gea. Schmeichel was not great with his feet, but he was very proactive. van der Sar was good with his feet, but the main thing I liked with him was how brave he was coming of the line. Even Barthez, that knucklehead. So I kind of grew up with that type of goalkeeper, and it always felt like they «set» the tone for how we played.
I also thought de Gea kind of did the same. But not in a way I enjoyed.
That was always a thing I did not like with de Gea. Schmeichel was not great with his feet, but he was very proactive. van der Sar was good with his feet, but the main thing I liked with him was how brave he was coming of the line. Even Barthez, that knucklehead. So I kind of grew up with that type of goalkeeper, and it always felt like they «set» the tone for how we played.
I also thought de Gea kind of did the same. But not in a way I enjoyed.
Agreed.
I don't know how good Vitek is but I wouldn't put it past United to go spend £25 million on a young keeper when we already have an equally promising young keeper.
We'll see but that would be yet more daft squad structuring.
We'll see but that would be yet more daft squad structuring.
Username checks out
He is favorite to claim those and block the attacker because he is quick off the line.
Bayindir, Onana or even De gea struggle at those.
Agree. It’s pleasing to see him doing well, but people getting dizzy over videos like that when to me it’s a pretty easy day. Jesus if you put up some VDS, Big Pete and even DDG great performance videos up on here, it could possible cause mass casualties
If he continue this - there will be really good european clubs wanting to take him off our hands next season - either on loan, or as a transfer. There will be clubs offering £20 million + for him next season, I am sure of it.But I hope we keep him - his potential is gigantic
For someone, who's not supposed to be very good with the ball, he sure is comfortable being on it outside of the box. That's, his box command and coming off the line are what's most impressed me in every touch compilation I've seen so far.
I think his parrying technique/direction needs some work but hopefully his coaches addresses that. He has the agility and length but perhaps he may be snatching at saves/reacting to the shot rather than using his footwork.
I think his parrying technique/direction needs some work but hopefully his coaches addresses that. He has the agility and length but perhaps he may be snatching at saves/reacting to the shot rather than using his footwork.
A lot depends on how Lammens does over the next year or two - but if his performances are up and down (as I'd expect from a young keeper new to the PL)
I don't want to see us selling Vitek at all. I rate him quite highly and I think a few seasons of loans in the PL will give us an indication which keeper will be better for us in the long term.
Playing against Southampton live on Sky now. 3-1 up - could've done better for the first goal but been really good since.
Bristol City are my local side so I like to see them do well.
Bristol City are my local side so I like to see them do well.
A rare mistake - and a reminder that he's still got a long way to go and is still young.
Yeah that was an Onana level of a clanger.