In line with Casemiro and Bruno Fernandes in the center of the pitch for Manchester United next season, Mason Mount of Chelsea is what Erik ten Hag believes to be the ideal player. When the transfer window opens in a month, the Red Devils are reportedly interested in bringing Mount to Old Trafford. The England playmaker is widely anticipated to depart Chelsea for a new challenge.
As things stand, Mount’s long-term future in west London appears to be quite questionable as Chelsea’s contract negotiations seem to be at a standstill despite months of internal discussions. Since Mount has emerged as a target for Liverpool ahead of the upcoming summer transfer window, United has been mentioned as one of the clubs interested in signing him.
According to Forbes, Erik ten Hag appears to have already determined where Mount would fit into his plans for the upcoming campaign and is anxious to use him as a box-to-box player with Casemiro and Fernandes. Ten Hag reportedly wants to play with “two number eights” in the engine room, with Casemiro ready to resume his holding midfield position after excelling in his first season at Old Trafford.
As part of a strong midfield trio, this would leave Mount and Fernandes as the two first-choice possibilities, though it is unclear at this point if United would be able to work out a deal with Chelsea to get the former shortly. The Blues are believed to be content with losing Mount after the season, which raises the possibility that a bidding war will soon break out if United is joined in trying to buy Mount by clubs like Liverpool and Arsenal.
According to recent rumors, Mount would prefer to sign with the Red Devils this summer over any other team, giving Ten Hag the advantage in the race to sign the 24-year-old before the start of the new season. But if a deal materializes will depend on whether United and Chelsea can agree on a transfer fee as Mount approaches the last year of his current contract at Stamford Bridge.
Former United player Gary Neville recently suggested that Mount would be a wise addition to his old team given his capacity to flourish under Ten Hag’s tutelage. Ten Hag has a penchant for grooming technical players and would be in a good position to assist the Chelsea player in reaching his full potential at Old Trafford.
Mason Mount is a coach’s player, in my opinion, and there have been many football players in my career who have received more recognition from the coaching staff for their work than from the spectators, according to Neville, who spoke to Sky Sports.
“I’m not shocked Manchester United is interested in Mason Mount. Although I don’t think it would be a top priority in this situation, Ten Hag wants midfielders. You may recall that Dutch coaches prefer to control the possession of the ball. Ten Hag wants players with good ball-handling skills, like Frenkie de Jong.
“He loves Fernandes, he loves [Marcel] Sabitzer, and he loves [Christian] Eriksen. Mason Mount is a technical player who is available, thus he frequently leaves Fred and [Scott] McTominay off the team because he prefers more technical players.