Manchester United dropped more valuable points over the weekend in Premier League action, drawing lowly Burnley 1-1 to keep themselves in sixth place and a whopping 13 points behind Aston Villa in the fourth and final Champions League slot.
It has been a season full of disappointments at an individual level, to the point where even if Manchester United decide to keep Erik ten Hag around as manager, the Dutchman would be far from their biggest problem.
Marcus Rashford has been massively disappointing in 2023/24 after scoring 17 goals last season to tie a career-high, but he isn’t the only big name underperforming at Old Trafford this season.
Raphael Varane and even former Real Madrid teammate Casemiro haven’t been at their best standard, Antony has looked like a huge waste of money, and new signings like Sofyan Amrabat have failed to make an impact.
But the most disappointing player has been Mason Mount, especially when considering the success he had in the past when he helped Chelsea win the Champions League – and the price Manchester United paid to bring him in from London.
Mount cost Man United 60 million pounds this past summer, and, at the time, he looked like a bizarre signing, since the Red Devils already had one of the most productive playmakers in the league in Bruno Fernandes.
Meanwhile, Chelsea were open to selling Mount because he wasn’t good enough defensively to be a No. 8. He could not meet the robustness Chelsea wanted in the middle of the park, so why would he do the same as an 8 for Man United?
The Red Devils tried using Mount as part of a double-pivot with Casemiro, but his impact on the game was limited there, especially since his passing range and defensive quality were lacking.
Mount isn’t a 6 or an 8. He’s a 10. Worse yet for Man United, he’s also struggled to stay healthy and has started just four games as a result. He’s made more than double that number of appearances off the bench with nine.
Manchester United needed Mason Mount to come in and be an immediate top-level starter. Instead, Mount has been a backup-level player for Man United and nowhere near the 60 million pounds they invested in him. It won’t be easy to move on from him this summer either.
The managing editor of The Trivela Effect, Kevin has 15 years of experience in digital media. He has been an editor for NFL Spin Zone, Daily DDT for pro wrestling, Autzen Zoo covering the Oregon Ducks, Musket Fire covering the New England Patriots, The Real Champs covering Real Madrid, Old Juve covering Juventus, Rush The Kop covering Liverpool, and Release The Knappen covering Schalke. His work has been featured in ESPN, Bleacher Report, Yahoo! Sports, NBC Sports, and other outlets. You can contact him at the site’s official Twitter handle @TrivelaEffect or via the site’s official email thetrivelaeffect@gmail.com.