Manchester United have agreed personal terms with Chelsea’s Mason Mount as they look to recruit a new midfielder this summer.
Erik ten Hag has been left short of options in midfield at times this season and were prompted to bring in Marcel Sabitzer on a last-minute loan deal in January after Christian Eriksen sustained an ankle injury.
United simply do not have the depth in that area of the pitch to cope when injuries and suspensions strike, which is why they are targeting a new addition.
Mount’s contract at Chelsea expires next June, and after ultimately unproductive talks over a renewal, he looks set to leave for pastures new.
READ MORE: United agree personal terms with Mount
So, if United were to sign Mount, how might he perform at Old Trafford next season? Let's take a look...
To set up this simulation, we used the Football Manager 2023 editor to arrange for Mount to join United on July 1, 2023, using FM23 to run the simulation. We then simulated the entire 2023/24 season to see how the England international could perform.
Mount quickly became a favourite of Ten Hag's, and the Englishman eventually was the first name on the team sheet for the Dutch boss. In an attacking role, the 25-year-old had a great first season in Manchester, managing 44 appearances across all competitions.
Mount's best competition was the Champions League, as he averaged a rating of 7.32 per game while scoring two and assisting four in eight appearances. He played the most in the Premier League where he scored seven and assisted five in 33 games, while he also played three games and scored once across the FA and Carabao Cup.
Across all competitions, the 25-year-old grabbed 10 goals and nine assists, averaging a rating of 7.23 per game. When compared to the rest of the midfielders in the United squad, Mount had the joint-highest average rating with two other players.
Mount, Bruno Fernandes and Casemiro all managed a 7.23 rating per game, with the trio by far the best midfielders at the club in the simulation. Fernandes starred with 15 goals and nine assists, whilst Casemiro had the joint-highest passing success rate in the United squad.
At the end of the 2023/24 season, Football Manager 2023 put together an overall best United XI, based on performances, statistics and other metrics. This is what United's best XI looked like at the end of the 2023/24 season as predicted by Football Manager 2023:
Full United best XI (4-2-3-1): De Gea; Wan-Bissaka, Varane, Martinez, Malacia; Casemiro, Eriksen; Fernandes, Mount, Sancho; Rashford.
Ten Hag opted to play a 4-2-3-1 formation in the 2023/24 season, getting the best out of Mount by playing him as an attacking midfielder behind Marcus Rashford up front. Fernandes was deployed on the right of midfield, while Jadon Sancho made the squad on the left after registering 10 goals and 11 assists.
In the 2023/24 season, the league became much more competitive, with Liverpool, Chelsea and Tottenham all improving massively on the previous campaign. A lot more points were shared between the top six, but United still managed to just about claim a spot in the Premier League top four.
A poor end to the season saw United draw two and lose one in their final five games, but luckily for Ten Hag's side, Chelsea and Spurs also dropped points in that time as they finished one point behind United on 64 points. 18 wins, 11 draws and nine defeats saw Mount's new side pick up 65 points, 10 fewer than they managed in the 2022/23 season.
City won the league after a three-way battle with Liverpool and Arsenal, while Newcastle dropped out of the European spots, ending the season in eighth place. On their return to the Champions League, United were unable to go far in the competition, with their journey ending in the last 16.
After a 2-0 loss against RB Leipzig in the first leg, two late Timo Werner goals saw the German side win 4-3 on aggregate, despite United racing into a 3-0 lead at half time in the second leg. Ten Hag's side couldn't defend their Carabao Cup after losing 4-1 to Man City in the third round, and it wasn't much better in the FA Cup, losing 3-2 to West Ham United in the fourth round.
Overall, FM23 predicts that if Mount moved to United, the Englishman would have a good season on an individual level amid a season of regression for the team as a whole.
Would you like to see United sign Mount? Let us know in the comments
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