Mason Mount | 2026/27 Performances

IF he can stay fit and available for at least 40 games this coming season, he’s a valuable player to have. Very versatile, hard worker and lots of big game experience which is valuable. Potentially a Ji-Sung Park redux.
 
criticalanalysis said:
Worked really hard and more positionally disciplined compared to previous games. I wouldn't 'rely' on him in deeper midfield to control games against better teams but he's proved once again he can do a job to a fairly high level considering it's not his usual position. Could be a very useful player for us this season if he can get on the pitch consistently enough.
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We don't need to rely on him against better teams, he just needs to not be a massive step down from the starting 2 CMs like Ugarte was. Santos and Mount supporting and/or challenging Kobbie and Tielemans is a good situation to be in. If he is available not a lot of teams in the world would have a 4th choice CM the quality of Mount.
 
quadrant said:
He’s said in the past that 8 is his preferred position.
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Interesting. He definitely seems like a natural fit as an 8, but he barely played there for Chelsea iirc? Shame we haven't been able to try him out there before now, other than in his first 2 appearances in Ten Hag's donut midfield.
 
He was absolutely brilliant today, head and shoulders above anyone else and makes you realise the levels of pro players vs academy etc. Missed so much football but so far ahead of others around him, he was just different class.

His fitness is such a shame, hopefully gets a run of games but remains to be seen. If he does he’ll be a starter for us without a doubt. Can play wide, as a midfield 2 and compete with Bruno but we just can’t rely on him.

Must frustrate him no end, must watch us and think he’s better than the majority.
 
The inevitable will happen…so a good pre-season won’t change anyone’s opinion.

But you live in hope his body might actually be able to play football for 90 minutes at some stage during his United career.

C’mon Mason prove us all wrong!
 
flameinthesun said:
We don't need to rely on him against better teams, he just needs to not be a massive step down from the starting 2 CMs like Ugarte was. Santos and Mount supporting and/or challenging Kobbie and Tielemans is a good situation to be in. If he is available not a lot of teams in the world would have a 4th choice CM the quality of Mount.
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Yes, I'm just cautioning against the idea and hopefully Carrick will agree, that whilst he's a potentially a good squad player/first teamer, he'll need a lot more performances like today before we can reliably ask him to play in deeper midfield period.
 
I Don’t want to get my hopes up and I don’t want to curse him but he has looked good these last two games. Actually I’d go so far as to say he was excellent today. It’s only pre season and all but the things he and Santos were doing were fantastic.

Hopefully this continues and we finally get the fit and inform version of Mount. Fingers crossed.
 
We all know Mount is a class act, but he can’t stay fit, there’s no reason that would magically change this season

I’ve always rated him and would want him to stay, but don’t have high hopes for consistency
 
He's an excellent footballer but even as one of his biggest defenders, I agree that we can't rely on his fitness.

We need another midfielder and then if Mount does suddenly stay fit then it's up to the players to all fight for their place.
 
I just don't see it working playing Mount in a midfield two in the Premier League when games will be intense, physical and combative. Completely different to pre-season run arounds when the pressures off.
 
Lennon7 said:
We all know Mount is a class act, but he can’t stay fit, there’s no reason that would magically change this season

I’ve always rated him and would want him to stay, but don’t have high hopes for consistency
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Luke Shaw's 38 prem games last season says hello.
 
Trequarista10 said:
I just don't see it working playing Mount in a midfield two in the Premier League when games will be intense, physical and combative. Completely different to pre-season run arounds when the pressures off.
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Your point is obviously relevant. I remember him playing in the midfield two a couple of times I believe under Ten Hag, and wasn’t too impressed, even if ai had thought it might work in theory. Tbf at the time I wasn’t too impressed with him in any position at Man Utd, even if I had been very impressed by him at Chelsea in more attacking roles.

Then again, he played in a pivot with Kobiie away vs a Brighton that is known as just such a PL team you mention, and he played very well. Now that he’s been the best player so far in preseason IMO, he’s played four straight games in the pivot and done very well. He will certainly be interesting to follow, provided I can’t be bothered to repeat it you know what I mean, and at this point I’m not going to rule him out in the fight for starting places against Hull.
 
I hope I'm wrong but him in midfield and Yoro at RB feels like it will go really well in preseason, then in the first game against Hull Mount will pull a muscle and Yoro will look completely out of place.

I really like Mount, would be such a boost if his issues are behind him but you simply cannot rely on him. Players like him and Martinez cannot be viewed as starters or even squad players because they simply can’t get on the pitch. Until they prove otherwise they just have to be seen as a bonus.
 
Give it less than two pages before we are talking about selling him and he's one of the worst signings in the clubs history etc.
 
I really hope he has a good season, we need him to rotate with Bruno and give him some off time once in a while.
 
It’s funny how opinions and the narrative can shift so quickly on forums and I think Mount and Mainoo threads are enlightening. How some people failed to see their talents even if they don’t like them as players or people still confuses me.

Even with his history with injuries, it doesn’t mean I can’t recognise the talent or see that he could be influential in the season. I’d rather have the hope than assume the worst or have none at all.
 
Borninthe80ts said:
It’s funny how opinions and the narrative can shift so quickly on forums and I think Mount and Mainoo threads are enlightening. How some people failed to see their talents even if they don’t like them as players or people still confuses me.

Even with his history with injuries, it doesn’t mean I can’t recognise the talent or see that he could be influential in the season. I’d rather have the hope than assume the worst or have none at all.
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I think most of us knew that a fit Mount was a good player, but I don't think many expected him to be this good in a two man midfield. There have been times these last couple of games he's almost looked like Scholes out there, controlling the entire team around and dominating the middle of the park.

Obviously it's just been preseason games and it'll be a whole other level to be able to do it regularly in the PL and against decent opposition in the CL, but he's shown aspects of his game that I didn't know he had.
 
MadDogg said:
I think most of us knew that a fit Mount was a good player, but I don't think many expected him to be this good in a two man midfield. There have been times these last couple of games he's almost looked like Scholes out there, controlling the entire team around and dominating the middle of the park.

Obviously it's just been preseason games and it'll be a whole other level to be able to do it regularly in the PL and against decent opposition in the CL, but he's shown aspects of his game that I didn't know he had.
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Maybe it was just the posts that I saw. There were some rational perspectives but there was definitely a lot claiming he was basically a nothing player. Some many why did we buy hims and the like. He has played deeper to for Chelsea, England and United too so maybe I’ve been fortunate to have seen those games.

I agree he has shown super form these last two games but even just watching him play before for me you can see he has the intelligence to adapt tactically and technically. Not that we can be right all the time but these performances contradict those assessments for sure for me.
 
Grande said:
Your point is obviously relevant. I remember him playing in the midfield two a couple of times I believe under Ten Hag, and wasn’t too impressed, even if ai had thought it might work in theory. Tbf at the time I wasn’t too impressed with him in any position at Man Utd, even if I had been very impressed by him at Chelsea in more attacking roles.

Then again, he played in a pivot with Kobiie away vs a Brighton that is known as just such a PL team you mention, and he played very well. Now that he’s been the best player so far in preseason IMO, he’s played four straight games in the pivot and done very well. He will certainly be interesting to follow, provided I can’t be bothered to repeat it you know what I mean, and at this point I’m not going to rule him out in the fight for starting places against Hull.
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I've always thought he could be a good CM, but like you the couple of times he played CM under Ten Hag was underwhelming to say the least.

And of course, the fact it's pre-season means it's easier to play better too, and he's yet to prove it consistently in competitive matches (at Man Utd, esp as a CM).

But I think a big part is the fact that he's playing with Santos. For all the strengths of Casemiro and Mainoo, their short/mid range passing through the middle through the lines, isn't great (Casemiro) or as consistent/quick & accurate (Mainoo) as Santos, and I think Mount thrives more when that happens more consistently.
 
MadDogg said:
I think most of us knew that a fit Mount was a good player, but I don't think many expected him to be this good in a two man midfield. There have been times these last couple of games he's almost looked like Scholes out there, controlling the entire team around and dominating the middle of the park.

Obviously it's just been preseason games and it'll be a whole other level to be able to do it regularly in the PL and against decent opposition in the CL, but he's shown aspects of his game that I didn't know he had.
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Exactly, Mount has combined his usual hard work, assured technique and a good reading of the game along with an actual understanding of the position. He's built bit of a partnership with Santos.

However, we must remember that Brighton game last season was against a 40 year old Milner, a 34 year old Grob and a 35 year old Welbeck leading the line, whilst these pre-season friendlies are several steps below a regular PL game.
 
criticalanalysis said:
Exactly, Mount has combined his usual hard work, assured technique and a good reading of the game along with an actual understanding of the position. He's built bit of a partnership with Santos.

However, we must remember that Brighton game last season was against a 40 year old Milner, a 34 year old Grob and a 35 year old Welbeck leading the line, whilst these pre-season friendlies are several steps below a regular PL game.
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Fair points
 
Alex Scott works fine in a two-man midfield, there's no reason Mount shouldn't. He's even a better passer than Scott, although the latter is better with the ball in his feet.
 
I advocated for using him in midfield many many times, but i honestly can't see him translating this into Premier League games. Same as Yoro at RB, I consider this to be a 4th choice option if everything goes south.

On the ball he's equipped to do all things required in 2 man midfield, but off the ball he has wrong instincts, often positions himself badly to opposition players, is poor tackler etc. Sure, he might do it in a friendly but against well disciplined, tactically astute and physically strong opponent taking the game seriously (practically every EPL game) I am rather pessimistic.
 
Borys said:
I advocated for using him in midfield many many times, but i honestly can't see him translating this into Premier League games. Same as Yoro at RB, I consider this to be a 4th choice option if everything goes south.

On the ball he's equipped to do all things required in 2 man midfield, but off the ball he has wrong instincts, often positions himself badly to opposition players, is poor tackler etc. Sure, he might do it in a friendly but against well disciplined, tactically astute and physically strong opponent taking the game seriously (practically every EPL game) I am rather pessimistic.
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He is a decent tackler and probably one of the most intelligent pressers in the league. Incredibly intelligent, tactically adept (which is why every manager loves him) and reads the game well. I would say his off-the-ball work is what makes him good for the CM role rather than his on-the-ball work.
 
Folks, it's not only preseason; it's early preseason where the pace and intensity aren't even at training game level. Proclaiming Mount this or that off the back of not only a small, but weak sample size is premature and also belies what we've seen of him, in midfield, in actual full-fledged PL games.

I hope for his sake and ours he can transfer this to the real/ pro world where thinking and execution time are a fraction of what he's getting now, but I wouldn't bet my house on it - what we need to see is how he looks at the end of preseason where the opposition are back in full swing and themselves fit and looking to make an impression, that'll provide better insight into how this version may do in midfield in proper games. Right now, the things that make for a good midfielder aren't being stress tested at all.
 
Fortitude said:
Folks, it's not only preseason; it's early preseason where the pace and intensity aren't even at training game level. Proclaiming Mount this or that off the back of not only a small, but weak sample size is premature and also belies what we've seen of him, in midfield, in actual full-fledged PL games.

I hope for his sake and ours he can transfer this to the real/ pro world where thinking and execution time are a fraction of what he's getting now, but I wouldn't bet my house on it - what we need to see is how he looks at the end of preseason where the opposition are back in full swing and themselves fit and looking to make an impression, that'll provide better insight into how this version may do in midfield in proper games. Right now, the things that make for a good midfielder aren't being stress tested at all.
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It's amazing how every pre-season fans make wild conclusions based on a couple of low-intensity friendlies. I remember them trying to convince me Colyer was going to be a big player for us.

We've literally had Mount for 3 competitive seasons, we've already seen his level, we've seen his reliability or lack of. Nothing is going to change now. Use him to give Bruno a rest when you can and as an emergency option in midfield if the likes of Mainoo/Tielemans are unavailable, that's fine.

Don't get your hopes up for him because he'll be injured for months before you know it. And I've even seen suggestions we change our transfer plans away from signing another midfielder because an almost permanently injured player had a couple of good pre-season games. Madness.
 
He's one of the best footballers we have. I really want it to work out this season, comes across a genuinely nice guy, seems a good leader, and is extremely versatile.

Make or 'break' this year. Hopefully he can do what Shaw did last season.
 
Dominos said:
It's amazing how every pre-season fans make wild conclusions based on a couple of low-intensity friendlies. I remember them trying to convince me Colyer was going to be a big player for us.

We've literally had Mount for 3 competitive seasons, we've already seen his level, we've seen his reliability or lack of. Nothing is going to change now. Use him to give Bruno a rest when you can and as an emergency option in midfield if the likes of Mainoo/Tielemans are unavailable, that's fine.

Don't get your hopes up for him because he'll be injured for months before you know it. And I've even seen suggestions we change our transfer plans away from signing another midfielder because an almost permanently injured player had a couple of good pre-season games. Madness.
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Yeah, he’s a fabulous footballer.
 
I hope we will still get another midfielder regardless, simply because of his fitness issue. But I can see Ineos using him as a reason to not sign another midfielder.
 
Andersons Dietician said:
I Don’t want to get my hopes up and I don’t want to curse him but he has looked good these last two games. Actually I’d go so far as to say he was excellent today. It’s only pre season and all but the things he and Santos were doing were fantastic.

Hopefully this continues and we finally get the fit and inform version of Mount. Fingers crossed.
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I think most of us will agree with you on that.
We have waited a long time to see him playing like that and if he can stay fit, he will be like a new signing.
 
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