[Redstain]

He's not, he's just always injured. When fit he'd have been a good asset with his relentless energy and pressing. Just a shame the only thing he's pressing are the buttons on his xbox controller.

The problem is every time Mount is mentioned it's hypothesis with an analysis assessing his involvement. Mount has made 32 appearances over 2 seasons for Manchester United he's been largely anonymous throughout.

He was a poor signing.

 

[simonhch]

Not much I can add to this, but just wanted to say great post.

Thanks mate! I am prone to infrequent, yet very long, posts. It’s always good to hear when someone appreciates them.

 

[sugar_kane]

The problem is every time Mount is mentioned it's hypothesis with an analysis assessing his involvement. Mount has made 32 appearances over 2 seasons for Manchester United he's been largely anonymous throughout.

He was a poor signing.

I’m actually astonished it’s as high as 32

 

[izec]

I’m actually astonished it’s as high as 32

Yeah, but only 1159 minutes. Most of them were sub appearances and he never managed to play a full 90 minutes game. His output is 1 goal and 1 assist.

 

[Tosicsleftpeg]

Got to be our worst ever signing surely??

 

[No Love]

Yeah, but only 1159 minutes. Most of them were sub appearances and he never managed to play a full 90 minutes game. His output is 1 goal and 1 assist.

Would make him one of our most potent attacking options if he put those numbers up this season

 

[Leftback99]

The thing is, so much of it comes down to the actual instructions given to players. Players aren’t this pre-determined set of stats and positions like in FM, they can perform vastly different roles and have completely different impacts based on the instructions they receive.

Bruno Fernandes for example, is a high risk/high reward type of player, when allowed to play with complete freedom. But as we’ve seen Under Amorim, and as we saw before he came to United, he can operate very well as a deeper central midfielder where his expansive passing range is a very effective weapon.

Under the right coach, with the right instructions, a midfield three of Mainoo, Bruno and Mount could work very well. But it would not work at all if all three were allowed to do whatever they wanted or received crazy instructions. I mean, this is literally the point of coaching. It’s like when Di Maria, a slight, physically puny winger, was moved into central midfield by Ancelotti and became the absolute engine and power house of that Madrid team. Closing people down relentlessly in midfield, and driving forwards at pace.

The problem when Mount came wasn’t that he was a specific type of 10 and Bruno was another type of 10, it was that the midfield unit….along with Casemiro at that time, had to be instructed to play in a cohesive way that worked for the entire team. Both Mount and Bruno have shown they have all the qualities to play in central midfield, but that’s not enough. Players have to know what they are doing with the ball and without it, and those instructions have to make sense.

Unfortunately, at that time, little of what we did made any sense. If you look at what Casemiro was doing, passing it and then bombing forwards, it was completely nonsensical when he was supposedly the anchor man. He didn’t do that for shits and giggles, he did it because that’s what he was told to do; and it completely undermined the entire basis of the team. In fact Amorim said, very early on, that he had to stop training so many times because the midfielders were passing the ball off and then just running up front. And he had to teach them to stop.

While it’s perfectly clear that there are players who fit roles better than others, and that’s why specialist players have such high value in the transfer market, it is also true that players are rarely actually confined by what we consider their position to be. Their success or failure is more often than not determined by the individual instructions they receive and how that fits within the overall patterns of play and dynamic of the team. Ten Hag had no real plan, which meant the entire thing was a failure. People blame that on Mount being a bad fit, but I guarantee that the right coach, giving the right instructions, could make a brilliant midfield out of Casemiro (of 2 years ago), Bruno and Mount. Klopp would’ve eaten that shit for breakfast. Hardworking, technically gifted, physically robust players? Yes please. And probably why he tried to sign both Bruno and Mount at different times.

When I go back and look at Ten Hag’s reign, the peak of which I consider to be the lead up to the League cup victory, much of his early tactics were decided by the physical limitations of certain players. At the time we had Eriksen starting and sitting deep in midfield. He simply didn’t have the legs to do the whole kick and rush style kamikaze football Ten Hag wanted, and as such often just sat deep, giving us a reference point and anchor in midfield, that was capable of passing between the lines. When you look at those period of games, we exerted much more control and cohesion than at any point later in ETH’s reign, a phenomenon which peaked in the home victory against Spurs. A victory of immeasurable maturity and control. But a victory achieved almost by accident, because the physical limitations of Eriksen meant that his individual instructions had to be different to be ultimately intended style of football. If it was intentional, we would have continued it, because it was the period of his reign where we actually looked by far the strongest. But he had a different vision, of rapid, high pressing, kick and rush football - for which he signed Mount eventually - but which in reality was some sort of demented, unconnected gegenpress, focused on attacking overloads but without any consideration of how to intelligently progress the ball, or cover for the counter. Hence we scored very few goals, and conceded bucket loads.

Amorim is getting a squad that has treated the football like a hot potato for two and a half years. Not something which can be changed quickly. Players like Mount could potentially be a great asset to him in his 3-4-2-1, IF he can ever get fit and stay fit. Likewise, Mount could still be of tremendous value to a manager playing 4-3-3, and even alongside Bruno. But, the instructions given to all three have to be cohesive and have to make sense.

This was never really about his individual quality and characteristics, because he has all the tools to play as an 8 in a midfield 3, it was about the entire system being a hot fecking mess. We could’ve signed De Jong, Kimmich, or fecking Maradona, and the thing would’ve been an equal sized shit show. I’d bet my bottom dollar that the right coach could get a midfield of Casemiro (again of two years ago) as a disciplined 6, behind two eight and a half’s in Bruno and Mount, to be an utterly brilliant midfield. But it would take clear, disciplined instructions and a cohesive team approach that everyone understood.

As for Fred, selling him was an utterly bizarre decision. We didn’t get much more him, and we blew most of that on a loan fee for a vastly inferior player in Amrabat. While he was here, I didn’t consider Fred to be an automatic starter, but I didn’t say multiple times that I considered him to be one of, if not the, best second string midfielders in the league. A player content with having a squad role, coming off the bench and or not starting every week, but when he came on, or played, did so with an incredible amount of energy and enthusiasm. He had one of the best engines in the league and was an intelligent presser. He was also vastly underrated technically. It was a huge mistake letting him go, especially considering ETH was demanding his cms cover so much ground. He was about the only midfielder in the squad capable of getting up and down the pitch, at pace, over and over and over again. The only one naturally skilled for the utterly mental instructions ETH put in place. So naturally we sold him for peanuts,

Agree on the Spurs game being our peak under Ten Hag but Eriksen didn't actually start that game and only played a few mins. It was Fred instead who was man of the match, (similar in the Barcelona game later) which is why it was bizarre he got sidelined later in the season and then sold. Terrible decision.

Our football has been poor since the Eriksen injury which I saw as a disaster for us at the time.

On Mount like you say he's a good player in the right system but the injuries are very unfortunate.

 

[Andersonson]

Is he more Hargreaves than Hargreaves?

 

[Djemba-Djemba]

Got to be our worst ever signing surely??

I think he might be.

Other horrendous signings at least have something to claim as a highlight. Even the likes of Sanchez has a great 2nd half vs City to stop them beating us to win the title, or Sancho has a nice goal in a big win vs Liverpool.

Mount has got fecking nothing, he's done nothing memorable whatsoever.

 

[BorisManUtd]

I think he might be.

Other horrendous signings at least have something to claim as a highlight. Even the likes of Sanchez has a great 2nd half vs City to stop them beating us to win the title, or Sancho has a nice goal in a big win vs Liverpool.

Mount has got fecking nothing, he's done nothing memorable whatsoever.

You have to be fit to do that. And Mount never being available is definitely why he could actually be our worst signing unless he turns around his luck regarding injuries and performs well when fit.

 

[OverratedOpinion]

Every time I see this bumped I hope he is back in training. Our squad is so threadbare at the moment that even if it's just for 6 or 7 games or whatever it would be helpful.

But yeah he is clearly the worst signing we have made if things continue the way they have. Antony gave us a decent full season then being a squad option.

 

[Pav1878]

what has made it worse is the fact we have him the number 7 shirt too. What were we thinking?

I think that shirt needs to be put into hibernation until we get a good team again and a player emerges who is worthy of it.

 

[OverratedOpinion]

what has made it worse is the fact we have him the number 7 shirt too. What were we thinking?

I think that shirt needs to be put into hibernation until we get a good team again and a player emerges who is worthy of it.

I think that was just a marketing thing. He was looked at as a really marketable player.

 

[Red00012]

The chaos on here when he makes the bench for the final if we get there will be epic

 

[distant_red]

Every time I see this bumped I hope he is back in training. Our squad is so threadbare at the moment that even if it's just for 6 or 7 games or whatever it would be helpful.

But yeah he is clearly the worst signing we have made if things continue the way they have. Antony gave us a decent full season then being a squad option.

It’s either cause he’s back or a new injury update

 

[Waywestofthere]

Should this really be called a “performance” thread?

 

[Irwin99]

Every time I see this bumped I hope he is back in training. Our squad is so threadbare at the moment that even if it's just for 6 or 7 games or whatever it would be helpful.

But yeah he is clearly the worst signing we have made if things continue the way they have. Antony gave us a decent full season then being a squad option.

Was about to write the same thing. I don't recall ever being very impressed by this signing but if we beat Sociedad on Thursday we need our players back for the sake of having options. I actually think Amorim would like him in the 10 role.

The biggest problem for us at the moment is the forward line and just simply having options like Mount and Mainoo in the Europa League would be a big help.

 

[Red the Bear]

I don't want to pile on but he's probably done at this level isn't he?

The chances of making a comeback in his circumstances are markedly low.

 

[crossy1686]

Got to be our worst ever signing surely??

Sanchez, Antony, Sancho, Onana? The race to the bottom is a fierce one.

 

[crossy1686]

what has made it worse is the fact we have him the number 7 shirt too. What were we thinking?

I think that shirt needs to be put into hibernation until we get a good team again and a player emerges who is worthy of it.

No one wanted him at the club (fan perspective), they had to do something to show that they thought he was capable of something.

 

[DarkLord1984]

Every time I see this bumped I hope he is back in training. Our squad is so threadbare at the moment that even if it's just for 6 or 7 games or whatever it would be helpful.

But yeah he is clearly the worst signing we have made if things continue the way they have. Antony gave us a decent full season then being a squad option.

Every time I see it bumped I am expecting to see that his leg has fallen off while he was getting out of his car, and he'll be out injured for another two years.

 

[Marcus]

Looking at Mount, my concern is that even when fit, he can get into fantastic positions but just can't put the ball in the net. I have lost count of the opportunities missed.

 

[Marwood]

Looking at Mount, my concern is that even when fit, he can get into fantastic positions but just can't put the ball in the net. I have lost count of the opportunities missed.

It can't be that many opportunities. He's barely played.

 

[Marcus]

It can't be that many opportunities. He's barely played.

Ok point taken. It's just that I keep willing him to score on the opportunities he gets and he keeps fluffing those. Maybe my mind is playing tricks on me from the continuous disappointment.

 

[OverratedOpinion]

Ok point taken. It's just that I keep willing him to score on the opportunities he gets and he keeps fluffing those. Maybe my mind is playing tricks on me from the continuous disappointment.

You're not wrong, the last time we was fit he did keep getting in good positions and not finding a finish.

He has been a good finisher since he first broke through, it just looked like he was snatching at chances recently. Hopefully just a confidence issue.

 

[diarm]

Looking at Mount, my concern is that even when fit, he can get into fantastic positions but just can't put the ball in the net. I have lost count of the opportunities missed.

Lost count? I feel like I could count the number of times he’s actually played for us on my hands!

 

[bucky]

 

[IrishRedDevil]

My patience is running out, but willing to give him a final chance, if he can get fit and get a run of games before the end of the season he might be able to save his career here.
The sad thing is I think Amorim would love fit Mount.

 

[Amsterdam Devil]

I think he could be a player Amorim really likes in one of the 10 positions. But will he ever be fit and play long enough to get back to his form and rythym he had at Chelsea in the champions league year. When is he expected back? Or is that unknown as well?

 

[IrishRedDevil]

ld be a player Amorim really likes in one of the 10 positions. But will he ever be fit and play long enough to get back to his form and rythym he had at Chelsea in the champions league year. When is he expec

Due to train this week.

 

[OverratedOpinion]

It is good news even if it just means being able to have someone on the bench that isn't a kid for the next few weeks.

 

[Møllemanden]

He should be put up for sale as soon as possible. Seems like a nice guy, and a really good footballer. But it's just to expensive having him in the treatment room all the time.

 

[OverratedOpinion]

He should be put up for sale as soon as possible. Seems like a nice guy, and a really good footballer. But it's just to expensive having him in the treatment room all the time.

When you look at his time at Utd who do you think would buy him or even take on his wages for a loan?

This isn't the case of an underperforming player. It is one that is not even available to turn things around.

 

[Mike Smalling]

Will be like a new signing

 

[Billy Jim]

Could be useful if he can stay fit for the rest of the season (lol) and we actually manage to get through tomorrow night.

 

[pcaming]

His body is incapable of the high energy football that made him good, he needs to go to a lower paced league he's done here.

 

[romufc]

His body is incapable of the high energy football that made him good, he needs to go to a lower paced league he's done here.

I assume you are talking about now... before he signed for us, he was actually very capable of high energy football.

 

[ElDiabloRojo]

Due to train this week.

He will miss Luke so will be out again by next week.

Hope not by the way.

 

[Solius]

12 weeks. Did his hamstring explode?

 

[red_de_pologne]