Manchester United aren’t acting like a team who languished their way toward a 15th-placed Premier League finish last season, moving purposefully in the transfer market as they are.
Defeat against Tottenham Hotspur in the Europa League proved the final nail in the coffin, severing the last hopes of salvaging something from a rotten year, closing the door on a campaign on the continent in 2025/26.
But Ruben Amorim has a plan, and INEOS are showcasing the club’s unbreakable transfer pull, having signed Matheus Cunha from Wolverhampton Wanderers in a deal worth £62.5m.
Amorim has his work cut out, all right, but this new policy of identifying Premier League-proven product might just pay dividends in the long run.
Let’s have a look at how they sealed the Brazilian star’s signature.
Why Matheus Cunha joined Man Utd
It’s remarkable to see that top players are still drawn to the Theatre of Dreams even when Man United are in the deepest throes of their decline, and Cunha is the perfect representation of that fact.
Sure, United activated his release clause, but the 26-year-old was also coveted by Arsenal, Newcastle United and Tottenham Hotspur, all of whom will play in the Champions League next season. Aston Villa had also expressed an interest.
If Amorim can get the Red Devils back to a position of strength, just imagine the kind of success the outfit could have in the transfer market with a strategy far away from the scattergun approach of the past decade.
Signing players who have showcased their quality consistently in the Premier League seems to be a track that United are heading down, for Cunha’s not the only one driving a deal toward Old Trafford from another part of the country this summer.
Man Utd's next transfer expected 'soon'
According to reports in Italy, Manchester United have already agreed personal terms with Bryan Mbeumo, although negotiations continue with Brentford as to the structure of the financial package.
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Saying that, United are willing to pay £63m plus add-ons to sign the goalscoring winger, who has been expected to leave the Gtech Community Stadium for several months now. The final details with Brentford still need to be defined but it’s reported that an agreement is ‘expected soon’.
Tottenham Hotspur’s appointment of Thomas Frank has renewed Spurs’ hope that they could hijack the deal, but the player’s preference is to sign for the Red Devils in spite of their lack of European football.
How Bryan Mbeumo will improve Man Utd
Last season, Mbeumo bagged 20 goals across 38 Premier League matches, with Mohamed Salah, Alexander Isak and Erling Haaland the only players to outscore him.
A tenacious forward with a fixed winning mentality, he’s exactly what Amorim needs to turn the ship around. Indeed, the Cameroon international has been hailed for his “technique and work ethic” by journalist Henry Winter.
This is further represented through his underlying data; not just a goalscorer, the 25-year-old ranked among the top 9% of positional peers in the Premier League last term for crosses, the top 10% for clearances and the top 20% for touches in the defensive third per 90, as per FBref.
That latter metric, in particular, highlights Mbeumo’s willingness to drop deep and help the Bees in transition.
This vibrant range of qualities actually led the data-driven site to draw Cunha up as one of his most comparable players.
Cunha is a maverick, stylish on the ball and happy to step up and make things happen when no one else seems willing to. Man United need some of that.
When looking at the forwards’ respective top-flight campaigns, you begin to see exactly why United have been so desperate to secure these deals, with the players partnered on the flanks sure to add a whole lot to a frontline that has been lacking.
Matches (starts)
33 (29)
38 (38)
Goals
15
20
Assists
6
7
Shots (on target)*
3.3 (1.3)
2.2 (1.1)
Big chances missed
2
9
Pass completion
79%
74%
Big chances created
13
17
Key passes*
1.8
1.8
Dribbles*
1.8
1.4
Ball recoveries*
3.8
4.1
Tackles + interceptions*
1.7
1.7
Duels won*
5.5
4.7
As you can see from the table above, they are not all that dissimilar, Cunha and Mbeumo. In fact, with the forwards, favouring the left and right flanks respectively, both proven in the Premier League to be high-level goalscorers with creative flair and defensive application, it looks the perfect way to dynamise Amorim’s frontline.
The centre-forward picked to settle in the middle of the exciting stars will be a lucky man indeed. Though the Red Devils have faced countless disappointments after first finding such excitement in a big-money acquisition, INEOS have focused on two players capable of lifting the club’s attacking quality to a top level.
They will add goals, they will create, and they will improve the overarching fluency of a fallen giant. It’s unlikely to be a surprise that Mbuemo and Cunha are two Premier League forwards with similarly dynamic skill sets, tailor-made for a place in Amorim’s vision, a vision which has not yet been sighted properly on English shores.
While many supporters will understandably reserve judgment until the 2025/26 campaign is well and truly up and running, Mbuemo is a superstar, “unplayable” on his day, as was noted by Frank last season after scoring a hat-trick against Newcastle.
With a like-minded player in Cunha mirroring him on the other side, Amorim’s team are well poised for a much-needed resurgence.
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