Erik ten Hag confirms Manchester United starter vs Newport County and hails Ineos impact

Bayindir has been waiting for a chance

Altay Bayindir will make his debut for Manchester United against Newport County in the FA Cup fourth round on Sunday.

Bayindir joined United from Fenerbahce on transfer deadline day for £4.28million but fellow goalkeeper Andre Onana has started in all 30 games this season.

The Turkey international played in a behind-closed-doors defeat to Burnley in midweek and manager Erik ten hag confirmed he will replace Onana, who is on international duty with Cameroon at the Africa Cup of Nations.

“He will be in the goal,” Ten Hag said. “What we can expect for him is clear. He waits for his chance but he is experienced, he played in a big club in Turkey under big pressure, he knows how to deal with it.

“We were all very convinced when we brought him into this club. So we are looking forward to Sunday. Altay is very motivated, he can’t wait for this moment and now this is his moment.”

When asked about the possible pressure of facing a League Two club, Ten Hag replied: “You have been in Fenerbahce? Pressure. Also, Turkey, that is big pressure always, also for the national team. So he knows how to deal with it.

“Also in the Netherlands, we have the cup, we also play against lower-class teams. Always when you go, as a big club to a low class team, how you approach that, definitely we’re not in a position to underestimate any opponent so we will not.”

The Ineos Group are still awaiting regulatory approval from the Premier League for their £1.3bn investment in United, but they have hired Omar Berrada from Manchester City to take over as chief executive in the summer.

Sir Dave Brailsford, the Ineos sporting director, has been at United’s Carrington training complex again this week and Ten Hag is encouraged by the group’s early impact.

“It gives spirit in this whole club,” Ten Hag enthused. “Everyone notices this club is going into a period of changes and it’s because we want to achieve high targets, standards have to change.

“We started with this one-and-a-half year ago. I’m sure Ineos and me are very aligned on this, we understand we have to change, we started that process last season with the dressing room but also many departments.

“I am very happy to raise the standards, to collaborate more and Ineos can have a big impact on that.”