From Fringe to First XI? Mount’s Fight for a United Future

Mason Mount’s time at Old Trafford so far has been nothing short of troublesome. Injury after injury has seen the Manchester United number 7 really struggle to truly make his mark. This season, however, a new, refreshed Mount aims to change that.

When his transfer to United was confirmed in the summer of 2023 for £55m + £5m in add-ons, Mount believed this was the right choice in his career and was insistent that they were in a stronger position to win trophies than Chelsea.

This has been far from the truth, with the Red Devils winning the FA Cup, while the Blues’ continental success is back underway with the Conference League and Club World Cup completing their perfect trophy cabinet. However, Mount and Man United have their sights set on flipping the script entirely.

United have splashed the cash this summer on both Matheus Cunha (£62.5m) and Bryan Mbeumo (£65m), providing plenty of improvements up front for Rúben Amorim, with the two set to compete for the two 10 roles in his 3-4-3 system.

Mount Confident in United Comeback

After finishing in a Premier League low 15th place (their worst season in 50 years), Mount could not be more confident that United can right their many wrongs from last campaign.

He believes that he can fight for his place in the team and speaks on his desires to push himself and the team to reach a level they could not find last season. Mount says: “When you’re at a club like Manchester United, there has to be that competition there to perform and as a group we want to win and we’re all in that together.

”We want to perform as a group. We know last season wasn’t good enough so it’s about kicking on. Looking forward, the new lads that have come in have been brilliant in training so far.”

🗣️ Mount on next season: “Last season wasn’t good enough. We know that, but we’re ready to put that wrong right. We want to be back in Europe. I think that is a massive thing for the club. Europe, that’s the focus.” #mufc pic.twitter.com/9DhFZtcdgx

— The United Stand (@UnitedStandMUFC) July 25, 2025

Mount also believes that Mbeumo and Cunha will add some serious quality into the squad, suggesting it could take them to another level. He said: ”I’ll always back myself. I know what I can do. But we’re a team and we’re all working together in that. Obviously with the new signings coming in, they’re going to elevate us to another level and we all need to be at that level to really perform.”

Despite an injury-struck campaign last season, Mount was able to return to the team and even started in their Europa League Final defeat to Tottenham in May. I think it is safe to say, it still hurts him. ”It takes some to get over for sure. As a player, you’re just thinking about little things in the game. I started the game, so it was like, what could I have done in the situation?

”I think you don’t look too much into it, because you would drive yourself crazy, looking into loads of detail, but it hurts and the whole season hurt. This is a new slate now. We’re looking forward to performing. And that first game of the season is a great opportunity for us to do that.”

Mount will be working hard over pre-season and in their current Chicago tour, to earn a spot in that starting XI for their season opener a home to Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal.

Early Struggles in Manchester

Mason Mount’s time in Manchester so far has not gone at all how he would have hoped. He has missed 50 games through injury in just two seasons at Old Trafford, failing to prove himself to Erik Ten Hag simply because he could not stay fit for long enough. He spent a month out at the start of the 2023/24 season, before returning to the squad, and finding regular minutes: even finding an assist on his return against Crystal Palace.

In mid-November, however, a calf injury meant Mount was sidelined once again, but this time for almost four months. Mount returned as an extra-time substitute during United’s thrilling 4-3 FA Cup victory over arch-rivals Liverpool. He then went on to score on his Premier League return against Brentford, before falling off the board slightly towards the end of the season and he could only come off the bench in injury time in the FA Cup Final triumph over Manchester City.

He navigated his way through pre-season, performing well and consistently throughout, making a statement, and starting each of United’s opening three matches before suffering a hamstring injury in training, and missing most of September.

Mount returned once again a month later, as an unused substitute before featuring as a sub midweek against FC Twente in the Europa League. However, the following weekend, his plague of injuries continued. This time, a head injury against Tottenham saw the then 25-year-old out for the whole of October.

He came back as a sub against PAOK in Europe, and this time it was under a new manager. Ten Hag had been under pressure and was eventually sacked, with Ruud Van Nistelrooy taking charge as interim manager. Three weeks later, and he was playing under Amorim. The new coach offered a clean slate for everyone, and Mount seemingly benefitted temporarily, starting three of the first six matches under the Portuguese coach, before succumbing to yet another setback.

During the Manchester Derby in late 2024, Mount’s hamstring issue returned, and again he received a long Christmas break, this time missing three months of action. Mount returned to action in mid-March, and was given a lifeline by Amorim, who clearly trusted him and gave him regular minutes, whether it be off the bench or not.

🚨🗣️ Amorim: "He [Mount] felt something. We have to wait. He is an important player for us that I like a lot and that the team needs. He is humble and works hard." #MUFC pic.twitter.com/2eKCJ5p5z1

— UtdTruthful (@Utdtruthful) December 15, 2024

Towards the end of the season is when we saw Mount pay back Amorim’s faith, with his coach very happy with his attitude. He starred off the bench in the second leg of United’s Europa League Semi-Final, scoring a brace to seal a 7-1 aggregate victory to make the Final. He failed to get involved as much as he would have liked to in Bilbao, but it was a very positive end to the campaign on a personal note considering all of his setbacks.

Strengths and Weaknesses

🚨🗣️ 𝗡𝗘𝗪: Amorim: “We are going to suffer. But the feeling of bonding is really important.” pic.twitter.com/e3zT74EWAe

— The Touchline | 𝐓 (@TouchlineX) July 25, 2025

Amorim said constantly that the team will suffer a lot, and Mount has suffered potentially more than anyone. His extreme price tag put a lot of pressure on him to perform immediately, but his consistent struggle with injuries has been very tough to get through.

Yet, Mount has looked positive when he has been able to find minutes. Traditionally a creative midfielder, Mount has also proved a handy central midfielder who can offer value defensively too. Amorim likes to mix where he plays Mount, and he does not complain but gets on with it, and as you can see below, his stats illustrate his usefulness all over the midfield.

He ranks in the top 4% for tackles made per game among positional peers. He also ranks in the top 12% for blocks made, and in the top 24% for interceptions. All over the defensive metrics, he ranks in the top 40%, but he also ranks in the top 22% for pass completion, showing his skill in build up play, as well as ranking in the top 31% for progressive passes per game, with 4.64.

Although he is clearly skilled at defending his areas of the pitch and distributing the ball out wide or through the middle, Mount does struggle with dribbling progressively. He ranks in the bottom 7% for progressive carries, suggesting he is intercepted and tackled easily, losing the ball often. This translates into successful take-ons, where he ranks in the bottom 1%, displaying his poor play when advancing up the field, perhaps answering why Amorim sees him more fit to play a more defensive role.

This may work in Mount’s favour, with Mbeumo and Cunha competing with him, he may find a better chance of more minutes if he widens his options as to where he plays. Furthermore, the defensive stats also encapsulate his ability and intelligence in the press and is such a valuable asset to Amorim.

Mount has had his moments with the Red Devils so far, despite his reoccurring injury concerns. His standout moment so far has to be that special cameo in the second leg of the Europa League Semi-final against Athletic Bilbao, where this pearler started a storm as they went on to add three more before the game ended.

MASON MOUNT SCORES FOR MAN UNITED!

He takes the ball with a quality turn, and curls it into the corner of the goal 🤩

📺 @tntsports & @discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/M9ErA2HKbo

— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) May 8, 2025

Is There a Future at United?

With Amorim’s approach to the press being intense, it means that depth will be required to ensure that all of his options maintain fitness and everyone gets the rest they need. This could perhaps also be why Mount is being given an opportunity in the squad, while the likes of Alejandro Garnacho, Marcus Rashford, and Antony were told to stay in the UK and look for playtime elsewhere while the team toured the USA.

Mount has proven he can be a quality player for United, and he will definitely want to improve his attacking metric qualities, but his defensive qualities certainly make him a vital asset to this current United squad.

His versatility and defensive ability is key, as well as his strong mentality, which is why Amorim sees him as part of his squad for this season who are out for redemption, and Mason Mount may well be one to watch for the Red Devils as he hopes to stay and prove that the large sum they paid for him off Chelsea two summers ago was worth the wait.