Manchester United players returned to pre-season on Monday to begin preparations for the 2024/25 season. After a difficult 2023/24 campaign under Erik ten Hag, focus is on improving and competing in all competitions.
Poor form over the course of the football calendar partnered with severe injuries and out-of-form players left United in eighth place in the Premier League table. It was only the FA Cup final win over Manchester City that kept any optimism alive for this season.
Mason Mount was one of the players who suffered both injury setbacks and form issues. The £60m summer signing made just 20 appearances last term, starting just eight times.
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His energy in midfield and versatility was a huge miss for United and Ten Hag last season. A summer of recovery has been completed and the 25-year-old will be hoping to kickstart his career in red.
The United team will look quite different when they kick-off their Premier League campaign against Fulham. Possible exits for Casemiro and Scott McTominay means Ten Hag is incredibly likely to name a new-look midfield in August with the likes of Adrien Rabiot, Desire Doue and Joao Neves all linked.
Dutch duo Joshua Zirkzee and Matthijs de Ligt are closing in on sealing moves to Old Trafford. There is an expectation that a new midfielder, or two, will be signed depending on how successful sporting director Dan Ashworth is in raising funds through player sales.
A position that is often overlooked is the problematic area of left-back. Luke Shaw, when fit and on his day, is by-far the club's best left-sided full-back but his unfortunate injury record means United have often relied on the loan signing of Sergio Reguilon or Diogo Dalot to fill-in.
Now, reports are suggesting that Chelsea's Ben Chilwell is on United's radar. According to the Daily Mail, the England international is thought of to provide competition to Shaw after it was suggested that the 27-year-old was facing an uncertain future at Stamford Bridge under new boss Enzo Maresca.
Like Shaw, Chilwell has suffered with injuries and hasn't hit the same form of 2021 for some time. However, after a difficult debut season in Manchester for Mount, the signing of the Chelsea wing-back could solve more than one problem.
Chilwell and Mount are well-known good mates. In fact, Chilwell has labelled the United midfielder as his best mate. When Mount left the club, Chilwell was asked about his thoughts, which he said: "That's none of my business personally but I'd love him to stay. He's my best mate."
Now, having your 'best mate' with you doesn't guarantee instant success. However, what it will do is provide Mount with some sort of comfort needed to ensure he can finally live up to his price tag in a better environment.
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