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Mixed martial arts Stats Breakdown: Mason Mount Compared to New Man Utd Midfielders
Mason Mount compared to his fellow Manchester United midfielders
Manchester United had faced three bids rejected in their attempt to acquire Chelsea midfielder Mason Mount. Erik ten Hag, the manager, has been eager to include the talented midfielder in his team ahead of an important second year at Old Trafford. Initially, Chelsea had demanded a fee of £70 million for Mount. Last week United were able to agree a £55m five year deal with Chelsea for Mount. United have now announced Mount as their new number 7 as pre-season commences this week.
With the assistance of the statistical experts at OPTA, we have delved into Mount’s performance data from last season and compared it to the stats of Manchester United’s other midfielders. This analysis aims to shed light on what the English international could bring to Old Trafford in the upcoming season. Mount’s statistics were compared to those of Bruno Fernandes, Fred, Christian Eriksen, and Scott McTominay.
Mount has experienced better seasons than his performance in the 2022/23 season. Therefore, we have also gathered data from his standout season as a professional footballer, the 2021/22 season to gain a holistic understanding of his qualities on the pitch ahead of the new season.
In this article:
- Mount-ain to climb for Mason’s 22/23 Playing Time
- Mount’s Goal Return Expected To Improve
- Set Pieces Key To Mount’s Assists
- Passing Stats For Mount Need Improving
- Other United midfielders Trump Mount Defensively
- Mason Excels In Dribbling Stats
- Summary
Mount-ain to climb for Mason’s 22/23 Playing Time
Mason Mount faced a challenging season last season, participating in a total of 24 games. In comparison, Fernandes appeared in 37 games, Fred in 35 games and Casemiro and Eriksen both in 28 games respectively. Notably, Fernandes also led in terms of minutes played, accumulating 3318 minutes on the field.
Casemiro and Eriksen played a similar number of minutes last season, with Casemiro recording 2125 minutes and Eriksen with 2062 minutes. Despite playing fewer games than Fred, Mount actually surpassed the Brazilian midfielder in terms of minutes played, accumulating 1656 minutes.
Mount's most successful Premier League season saw him participate in 32 games, accumulating a total of 2364 minutes which massively supersedes his 22/23 season. Injuries and an up and down season would seemingly be the cause for Mount’s decline in games and minutes played.
Mount’s Goal Return Expected To Improve
Mount has garnered a reputation as a midfielder highly capable of scoring goals which is part of the reason ten Hag has been enticed by the prospect of him joining the Red Devils. Last season saw Mount amass the same amount of goals per 90 minutes as Fernandes, Fred and Casemiro who all managed (0.2). Mount managed this despite having a lower expected goals (0.1) per 90 minutes than Fernandes (0.3), Fred, Eriksen and McTominay (0.2).
Out of the United midfielders last season only Fernandes (2.5) and Fred (1.9) managed more shots per game than Mount who averaged 1.8. His shots on target per game (0.5) equal the numbers put up by Casemiro, Eriksen and McTominay. Unsurprisingly, Fernandes leads in shots on target at 1.0 per 90.
Mount’s 2021/22 season saw him better his 22/23 season in goals (0.42), expected goals (0.3), shots (2.9) and shots on target (1.1) which provides a glimpse into the goal threat United’s new number 7 could provide to the United side next season.
Set Pieces Key To Mount’s Assists
Last season saw Mount average 0.1 assists per 90 minutes which is less than Eriksen at 0.4, and both Fernandes and Fred at 0.2 per game. However, his expected assists at 0.2 was only trumped by Fernandes who averaged 0.3 per 90. Casemiro and Eriksen both managed 0.2 per game.
Mount with 1.6 chances created per 90 minutes trails both Fernandes (3.2) and Fred (2.2) in chances created. However, his chances created from open play sees him fourth out of the six midfielders with 1.1 per game which suggests Mount’s ability to create goal scoring chances from set pieces could be huge for United in the coming season.
Again, in his 2021/22 season Mount was able to exceed his 2022/23 season in terms of his assists at 0.38, expected assists at 0.26, chances created at 2.2 and chances from open play at 1.5. Mount has shown he is more than capable of being a creative threat to opposition teams defensive structure when he is fully fit and playing with confidence.
Passing Stats For Mount Need Improving
Mount's performance in key passing statistics falls short of his soon-to-be United teammates. He trails behind Eriksen (60.7), Casemiro (59.8), Fred (55.6), and Fernandes (50.3) in terms of passes per game with 38.3. Only McTominay made fewer passes per 90 with 33.3. Eriksen, Casemiro, Fred, and Fernandes also have a better passing success rate than Mount's 30.7.
Mount's passing accuracy stands at 80.1%, and his passing accuracy in the final third is at 77.8%. While they aren't the worst among the midfielders, these numbers arguably don't truly represent what Mount is capable of.
This is evident from his 2021/22 season where Mount once again exceeded his stats from the following season. He averaged 42.5 passes per game, with a passing success rate of 36.2%, a passing accuracy of 85.4%, and a passing accuracy in the final third of 83.5%.
Other United midfielders Trump Mount Defensively
Mount lags behind Fred, Eriksen, and McTominay in terms of duels (10.1), duels won (4.7), and duels won percentage (46.5%). His defensive statistics do not compare favourably to other United midfielders either. Additionally, he falls short in tackles (1.8), tackles won (1.0), tackles won percentage (56.7%), interceptions (0.4), and possession won per 90 minutes (4.6).
Interestingly, despite the 2021/22 season being Mount's best as a professional footballer, his numbers in duels, duels won, tackles, and tackles per 90 minutes fall short of his 2022/23 season.
Mason Excels In Dribbling Stats
It has never been more crucial to have midfielders and attackers who can dribble and maintain possession through their dribbling skills. Despite the previous season being a disappointment for Mount, his performance in this aspect of the game was still respectable.
Mount impressively ranks second in both dribbles per 90, successful dribbles, progressive carries, and fouls won per game. Additionally, he leads in 10+ progressive carries per game, which is crucial for United, as they currently lack a player in the first team who excels in these areas. Moreover, the English midfielder performs well with 1.5 fouls won per 90 and 9.3 carries per 90.
However, it is important to note that Mount was exceptional in the 2021/22 season in terms of his touches per 90 minutes, ball carrying capacity, and progressive carries. Mount hopes that combining his dribbling and ball carrying statistics from the past two seasons will bring a new dynamic to the Manchester United team.
Summary
Despite Mount’s 22/23 season being a poor one in comparison to the high standards he had set in prior seasons, it would be wrong to judge him solely on last season. Given the circumstances at Chelsea where the club changed ownership, management and had a heavy influx of players in the squad.
As the stats show, his 21/22 season was the best of Mount’s career so far. With him being aged 24 and in a new environment at United, under the guidance of ten Hag you would expect Mount to at least find a middle ground between his last two seasons.
