Bruno Fernandes sends heartfelt message to Altay Bayindir amid Man United exit rumours
Bruno Fernandes has sent a heartfelt message to teammate Altay Bayindir amid rumours that the goalkeeper could soon depart Man United.
Man United’s 2024/25 season could not have gone much worse, with Ruben Amorim unable to help them improve any following his appointment as manager last November.
Their goalkeeping woes continued throughout the campaign, as first-choice stopper Andre Onana again struggled to consistently impress in-between the sticks at Old Trafford, while back-up Bayindir was unable to grasp the opportunities handed to him to become number one.
The Turkish international kept just three clean sheets and conceded 18 goals in 10 appearances last term, and Bayindir has been mooted as “likely” to leave the club this summer as a result.
Onana’s recent injury is not as bad as initially feared, and former England goalkeeper Paul Robinson telling Football Insider that the Red Devils are doing all they can to sign Emi Martinez, it looks as if Bayindir will be the keeper to depart ahead of the new campaign.
Bruno Fernandes shares Bayindir’s post
Bayindir remains a United player for now, and he has been getting minutes in pre-season due to Onana’s injury woes, with a start in their 0-0 draw against Leeds United on Saturday (19 July).
The 27-year-old posted an update of him in training on Instagram on Thursday (24 July), as well as a picture of him and teammate Fernandes, who then reposted it to his own Instagram story with the caption: “Turkish brother” and a heart hands emoji.
Bayindir exit may be on hold until Onana is fit
Football Insider verdict
Onana has not particularly impressed as the Red Devils’ first-choice keeper over the last two seasons, but his lack of strong competition has meant that both of the managers he has played under for United have had to hand him consistent chances to prove himself.
Turkish international Bayindir has been his back-up since his own arrival in 2023, and despite some promising signs, the fact he has not been able to consistently take the former Inter man’s place speaks to his lack of authority and quality.
| Player | Appearances | Goals conceded | Clean sheets |
| Andre Onana | 101 | 148 | 24 |
| Altay Bayindir | 11 | 20 | 3 |
The 27-year-old conceded four goals against Newcastle and Brentford respectively after Onana was dropped by Amorim towards the end of the last campaign, and even benefitted from a controversial final-day decision in their game against Aston Villa when Morgan Rogers was deemed to have fouled him before scoring.
The fact that United are looking to sign a new goalkeeper means that his future surely lies away from the club, but it does seem unlikely that he will leave right now with Onana sidelined and veteran keeper Tom Heaton as his current competition in-between the sticks.
Instead, if the Red Devils do get a deal done for Martinez and the Cameroonian international returns to action as planned in August, then Bayindir could find himself on his way out late on in the transfer window, rather than in the next two weeks.