Fenerbahce fans are glad to see the back of Altay Bayindir! Man Utd signing injury-prone Turkish goalkeeper is a huge risk

Bayindir was born in Osmangazi in eastern Turkey and was brought up in a Muslim family. He started his youth career at Bursaspor, but made the move to Ankaragucu in 2013.

This switch would provide him with a route into first-team football. Aged just 21, he was handed his first Super Lig start in a 1-1 draw with Caykur Rizespor in November 2018, with Bayindir describing the experience as a "memorable night".

After that, he made the No.1 jersey his own, starting all but four of his side's remaining league games - and even being made captain when Ankaragucu faced Kasimpasa in November.

On the international front, Bayindir made real progress during this period too. He was named in the Turkey squad for the prestigious Toulon Tournament in 2018 and became a mainstay of the Under-21 side.

By 2019, Bayindir had established himself as the best young goalkeeper in Turkey, and it was little surprise when Fenerbahce snapped him up in the summer transfer window following the departure of Carlos Kameni and Volkan Demirel.

His direct competition for the goalkeeping jersey was the vastly more experienced Harun Tekin, but manager Ersun Yanal set his stall out on the opening day of the Super Lig season, starting the younger shot-stopper between the sticks.

It was a fairly bold move, but by matchweek two all the doubters had been silenced. After opening the campaign with a comfortable win over Gaziantep, Fenerbahce made the short trip to Istanbul Basaksehir - and Bayindir came to play.

He made four saves in an important 2-1 victory, with a 93rd-minute winner by Nabil Dirar sending the travelling support into raptures. This statement display gave Bayindir the platform to become Fenerbahce's starting goalkeeper and captain, as well as earn senior international caps.

The uncomfortable truth is that Bayindir's stock has fallen pretty dramatically in Turkey over the past few years. His downfall can be traced back to an unfortunate collision with Serdar Guler in a 2-1 defeat to Konyaspor in October 2021.

After the incident, he required surgery on a shoulder joint which kept him sidelined for several months. As if this was not frustrating enough, he suffered a similarly complicated injury towards the tail end of last season, this time undergoing a procedure on a back hernia.

There is a belief in his homeland that these two injuries have affected Bayindir considerably. Fenerbahce fans are not the most forgiving bunch and this drop off in performances led to supporters getting on his back during games last season. Manager Jorge Jesus kept faith in his goalkeeper and captain - and encouraged fans to do the same - but it's clear the atmosphere had an impact psychologically.

The criticism has not let up this season, either. During a Super Lig clash with Gaziantep earlier this month - in which Bayindir let the opposition pull one back despite getting a hand to Arda Kizildag's header - he even had a water bottle thrown at him from the stands. Unsurprisingly, he reacted angrily, throwing his hands up in frustration and smashing the ball to the ground in disgust.

An incident from the same game summed up the intense pressure he has been under. Bayindir would have hung on the crossbar hundreds of times in his career. However, on this occasion, his hands slipped, leading to him smashing his face on the metalwork.

On reflection, he may be relishing a fresh start at United. He seems set to relinquish his status as first-choice Fenerbahce goalkeeper to Irfan Can Egribayat - though that could change if they sign Dominik Livakovic - and he also lost the captaincy at the beginning of the season.

Even after the injuries, Bayindir has remained a highly-impressive shot stopper. His 6'6 frame gives him outstanding reach and his razor-sharp reflexes make him difficult to beat.

Thanks to his height, Bayindir is particularly adept in one-vs-one situations and, much like legendary United goalkeepers Peter Schmeichel and David de Gea, he makes a significant amount of saves with his feet.

He's also very quick to get back up after making a low stop, meaning he is capable of producing double-saves with real regularity. Sweeping up long balls over the top isn't an issue either, as he is blessed with decent acceleration off his line. For the most part, he times ventures out of his box pretty well too.

Perhaps unsurprisingly given his price tag, he is nowhere near Andre Onana's level on the ball. Then again, few goalkeepers in world football are. As we saw with Matt Turner at Arsenal last year, having a 'keeper who is not adept with his feet can cause issues with build-up in elite European teams.

Bayindir has also been accused of being a little rash. Most of the time, his propensity to slide tackle opposition forwards outside of his box is an advantage, but it is a high-risk strategy that could be exploited by some of the quicker strikers in the Premier League.

His handling is imperfect too. He can cover for this thanks to his good shot-stopping and speed, though there have been occasions where he should have held an initial shot, which would have made the need to produce a second stop redundant.

De Gea and Bayindir seem like kindred spirits. Both excel in the more traditional responsibilities of a goalkeeper, but each are also prone to errors and perhaps aren't good enough on the ball to function at the elite level. And, as alluded to earlier, the use of their feet to make saves is a common thread that has run through the two players careers.

These similarities might make it slightly surprising that United are moving for Bayindir. But this ignores the financial realities of the situation. Yes, Bayindir would likely not be suitable to start every week, but his low transfer fee and affordable wages has convinced United to take a chance with the talented goalkeeper.

Bayindir will have mixed feelings regarding his United move. On the one hand, he is joining one of the most lucrative leagues in the world and knows he is only ever an Onana injury away from getting a run in the first team.

Then again, he will be disappointed with how his Fenerbahce career has ended. The fact that things have deteriorated so rapidly after he signed a new contract in March is quite extraordinary.

By becoming a bonafide No.2, he is also accepting this he's unlikely to become Turkey's first-choice goalkeeper again. This will sting particularly harshly as we edge towards Euro 2024.

In terms of whether he is a good fit for the Red Devils, it really depends on how badly injuries have dimmed Bayindir's talent. The club are evidently aware of this, ensuring the player completed medical checks before they progressed negotiations any further.

Even with this pre-emptive scrutiny of his fitness levels, it's still a risk. But it may be one that United can afford to take as it has allowed them to get Henderson's bloated wages off their books.