Mason Mount foiled by Ten Hag’s ‘unforeseen dilemma’ at Man Utd

Erik ten Hag can’t find a place for Mason Mount in his team despite Manchester United really needing a player just like Mason Mount. The ‘unforeseen dilemma’ really should have been foreseen.

As Manchester United toiled once again in the Champions League, struggling for energy, forward thrust and somebody to win back the ball in positions to hurt Copenhagen, Mason Mount must have been pondering his life choices from the bench, where he remained for the duration.

The £55m summer signing returned to the starting line-up against Crystal Palace and Brentford after injury but was dropped for the win over Sheffield United, when it appeared – as was the case against Copenhagen – that United were crying out for a player just like him to pep up a lethargic team waiting for the opposition to make mistakes rather than forcing them.

Misguided optimism on Ten Hag’s part means Mount may indeed already be ‘questioning his decision’ to swap Chelsea for United.

We doubt anyone’s eyebrows were raised higher than Casemiro’s when he found himself in a midfield trio with Mount and Bruno Fernandes at the start of the season. Predictably overrun without sufficient support from two attack-minded companions, the Brazilian looked a shadow of the player who thrived in his debut campaign at Old Trafford.

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A report claiming Casemiro ‘regrets’ moving to United emerging on the same day as news surfaced of Ten Hag’s ‘worry’ over his dip in form was likely just a coincidence, but the suggestion that the midfielder’s downturn was an ‘unforeseen dilemma’ for his manager will likely have gone down poorly with the man tasked with being the lone protector of a porous defence. He was made to look poor by a system that was never going to work.

After a scrappy win over Wolves, and defeats to Tottenham, Galatasaray and Crystal Palace, Plan A of Casemiro, Mount and Bruno was put on the back burner, and may well have been entirely binned. Plan B, seen against Brentford, which saw Casemiro and Sofyan Amrabat behind Mount and Bruno, lasted little over an hour. Plan C – which has resulted in three wins on the bounce – does not involve Mount.

Scott McTominay has essentially taken Mount’s place, and United look like a team that makes sense with the Scot in midfield. He’s scored three goals and played admirably, but apart from anything else, he’s got experience playing in that role – deeper than Bruno, further forward than Casemiro or Amrabat – that Mount does not.

As is the case with Kai Havertz at Arsenal, Mount was bought to play in a position he barely featured in for Chelsea. And Ten Hag may now have realised – like Mikel Arteta – that his big-money summer signing isn’t only unused to the role, but unsuited to it.

Mount played either on the wing for Chelsea or as the furthest forward in a midfield three. Two of N’Golo Kante, Jorginho or Mateo Kovacic would play behind him. Amrabat, Casemiro and Mount is workable, but then where does Ten Hag play Bruno? He’s wasted on the wing.

That is probably where Mount should be given a go, because again, few would look at the way in which United are playing and not think they need someone who’s going to buzz around high up the pitch, winning possession and forcing chances. That’s Mason Mount 101. But Ten Hag seems desperate to stick it out with Marcus Rashford and Antony, no matter how ineffective they are, with and without the ball.

Mount’s regret levels will likely have been increased by watching Chelsea’s game against Arsenal, when Conor Gallagher and Cole Palmer operated in No.10 positions made for him. They picked the ball up between the lines and drove at the opposition, pressed high and won it back, and made late darts into the box.

It’s not as though that wouldn’t be an option for United, who let’s face it would not have missed a central striker in the Premier League as Rasmus Hojlund and Anthony Martial are yet to register a goal or an assist between them. But Ten Hag has great faith in Hojlund, and there has been enough evidence in his Champions League displays in particular that that faith will be repaid sooner rather than later.

So in short, there’s no place for Mason Mount in a team lacking the skillset of Mason Mount. A transfer that baffled many in the summer baffles most now, including perhaps Mount himself and evidently, his manager.

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