Forgotten man Mason Mount has been the standout performer in Ruben Amorim’s first few training sessions in charge of Manchester United.
Mount joined United for £60m from Chelsea last summer, but his time at Old Trafford has been hampered by a frustrating string of injuries.
The Englishman was handed the iconic number 7 shirt in a show of faith from then-manager Erik ten Hag, but has barely had an opportunity to demonstrate whether he’s up to the challenge.
He has made 26 appearances so far for United, and could be set to make that 27 at the weekend.
Proven in-the-know X account @AmorimEra_, via GiveMeSport, reports that Mount has been the “standout player” in training since the former Sporting Lisbon boss took control.
This has put him squarely in the frame to feature on Sunday in the Portuguese manager’s first match in charge, a trip to Ipswich Town.
Mount has been spotted in training playing as one of two number 10s in a 3-4-3 formation spearheaded by Marcus Rashford at number 9.
Helpfully for Amorim, who has already been tipped to make the 25-year-old a key part of his plans, Mount is used to working in this system; it was the favoured setup for Thomas Tuchel during his reign at Chelsea.
Mount was a key player for the German, picking up 11 goals and 10 assists in the Premier League in 2021/22, when the Blues finished third.
Amorim isn’t short of options in attacking areas, with captain Bruno Fernandes close to undroppable and Amad Diallo hitting serious form this season.
Both players would be expected to be mainstays of the United attack going forward, so an in-form Mount could cause the new head coach a pleasant problem.
Mount will be desperate to seize any chance to prove his worth at United, with his huge transfer fee and almost non-existent return often cited as another example of the club’s poor recruitment.
Joe Ponting
Joe has spent more than half his life writing about football and all of it following United. As a child he told a doctor his name was ‘Paul Scholes’, but could never pick a pass like him no matter how much he tried.
