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Daily Mail
21 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Mason Mount insists he's ready to fight for his place after Man United's £130m splurge on Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha
Mason Mount is backing himself in the fight for places at Old Trafford this season despite Manchester United spending more than £130million on Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha. Both new signings play in the two No.10 positions in Ruben Amorim 's 3-4-2-1 system, bringing them into direct competition with Mount. But the 26-year-old former Chelsea star is confident in his ability to hold down a regular first-team place after finally fighting his way back to form and fitness at the end of last season. 'One hundred per cent,' said Mount at United's hotel base in Chicago on their pre-season tour of the US. 'I mean, any time you do get that opportunity to be on the pitch, you want to do something. You want to affect the game. That's always the way I've looked at it. 'Any opportunity you get, you've got to try and take it. I'll always back myself. I know what I can do. But we're a team and we're all working together in that. 'Obviously with the new signings coming in, they're going to elevate us to another level and we all need to be at that level to really perform. 'It's competition. When you're at a club like Manchester United, there has to be that competition there to perform. As a group, we want to win and we're all in that together. We want to perform as a group. We know last season wasn't good enough so it's about kicking on, as I said. 'Looking forward, the new lads that have come in have been brilliant in training so far, and the first couple of weeks is not easy. So it's about integrating them into the group and making them feel as comfortable as possible and I think we've all done that. 'They know what's coming with the Premier League and the games and how difficult it is now; what they've done in the Premier League already, the amount of goals they've scored, the amount of assists they've created, that's exactly what we need. 'We're working together to try and improve that because last season we didn't hit those goals or assists as much as we could have done.' Mount has had an injury-plagued two years since joining United from Chelsea for £60m in 2023, making just 46 appearances and scoring four goals. But he was a regular after returning from a three-and-a-half month lay-off at Nottingham Forest at the start of April, rewarding Amorim's faith in him. 'He's definitely given that confidence to me from the first day he came in, speaking to me, and I know what he wants, and I feel like I know how he wants the team to play,' added Mount. 'So, yeah, it's been brilliant and definitely having the manager's confidence in me to go out there and perform, it definitely helps as a player. 'At the end of last season, obviously getting back and feeling really, really good, playing some games and having some goals and getting back involved in the goals was obviously very important for me. 'Still, obviously, I want to kick on and we want to do that as a team. So, it was a positive end for me at the end of the season to get back and play some games. But, yeah, want to push on for more now.' Mount scored three goals towards the end of the season and also picked up three yellow cards in his desperation to make up for lost time. 'I was getting far too many yellow cards for my liking! I think I've always had that in me. It's just when you're at the end of last season and I was coming back. At the beginning I was obviously not starting games. I was watching games and when you have that opportunity to come into the game, you want to have an impact and you want to get straight into the action. You want to do something. I got too many yellow cards and I had too many fouls.' Mount has been taking extra care to try and stay fit as he looks for a sustained run of games. 'Yeah, we've definitely looked at it in more detail,' he said. 'The small things matter massively in this day and age and in football now. 'When you've had small setbacks, it's about how you correct that and how you push on, and I think we've done that. We've looked at it and looked at why, and I feel we're in a really, really good place now going into this season. 'I had a good off-season and rested. I think that was probably one of the most important things, to take the rest. I slowly built up some sessions in the off-season, and that was from the staff here. 'They give us a little schedule to work off and just build up on our training. The first message was to rest for the first week or so and then build up and be ready because when we come back to pre-season, we know it's going to be kicking on and trying to get to the levels as quick as possible because we've got games here (in the US) and we've had a game already (against Leeds in Stockholm). 'It can't be a slow progression. We've got to try and kick on and get to the levels as quick as we can because, as I said, this game's coming thick and fast and the next minute it'll be the first game of the season, so we have to be ready.'
Daily Mail
21 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Liverpool's transfer Q&A: How can they afford Alexander Isak? Will they get him after he asked to leave Newcastle? Do the Reds need to sell to buy?
Liverpool are readying an official approach to Newcastle after Alexander Isak told the club he wants to explore a move away this summer. Mail Sport exclusively revealed the bombshell on Thursday, after Isak did not did not travel with the Newcastle squad on their pre-season tour of the Far East Newcastle's hierarchy are aware of Isak's wish to consider his options this summer, with Liverpool readying a British record offer. An offer in the region of £150million could see a move accelerate in the coming weeks, despite Newcastle's desire to keep hold of the forward. A Liverpool move for Isak would continue the reigning Premier League champions vast spending this summer. Mail Sport's Lewis Steele answers the key questions surrounding Liverpool's interest in the Newcastle forward. HOW CAN LIVERPOOL AFFORD ISAK? They have barely lifted a finger in the transfer market in the two years before this window, and they are well within the profit and sustainability rules. That's despite signing Florian Wirtz (£116million), Hugo Ekitike (£79m), Milos Kerkez (£40m), Jeremie Frimpong (£29.5m), Giorgi Mamardashvili (£29m) and young goalkeeper Armin Pecsi (£1.5m). Mail Sport reported several months ago that Liverpool have a 'war chest' for transfers this summer and that five or six key signings would be no surprise. So yes, they can afford Isak. DO THEY WANT HIM? Yes. They have already made an approach to Newcastle and, despite being politely told to go away, they have not. They believe the signing of Ekitike, who jetted into Hong Kong on Thursday and met his new team-mates for the first time, is shrewd business. Measured against their data tests, the France striker scored higher than all but Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland. In many respects, they have got their new No 9. But if Isak is available, they will have another look and are readying an official approach. WILL THEY GET HIM? If they go all out for him and put the money on the table, there is every chance that Liverpool will sign Isak this summer. A lot will depend on whether Arne Slot and sporting director Richard Hughes decide to press forward with the move. The next few days will be interesting. It seemed unlikely they would sign Wirtz when the interest was first known and they did, so let's see. DO THEY HAVE TO SELL IN ORDER TO BUY? Yes. And they will. Of the 30 men on the pre-season tour of Hong Kong and Japan, quite a few have uncertain futures. Luis Diaz has strong interest from Bayern Munich, Darwin Nunez is unsure over his future and Harvey Elliott said on Thursday: 'If I had it my way I would be here for the rest of my career. I love everything about the club, but I kind of need to be selfish and see what's best for me. I have big ambitions. I want to get in the World Cup squad.' Young midfielder Tyler Morton, like Elliott, has interest from West Ham and clubs on the continent, while Federico Chiesa has not travelled to Asia and is likely to depart. They have already sold Caoimhin Kelleher and Jarell Quansah but more exits are expected. ARE OTHER CLUBS IN FOR ISAK? He is probably the best No 9 on the market so, naturally, yes. But it does feel like he wants Liverpool. Saudi Arabian clubs have posted their interest but it is hard to see him going there. If the champions want him and opt to go full out for the deal, it seems likely he will be pulling on the new Liverpool kit come next month. A lot of ifs, buts and maybes but the simple summary is: the Reds like him and he wants to leave Newcastle. Normally that only ends one way.
Daily Mirror
21 minutes ago
- Daily Mirror
Mason Mount opens up on Man Utd "hurt" and gives first impressions on new signings
Manchester United suffered a disastrous season last time out and £60million signing Mason Mount is eager to put his injury woes behind him to help return the club to its former glories Mason Mount says Manchester United's players are determined to make up for the 'hurt' of last season's worst-ever Premier League finish. United ended last season in 15 th place, their lowest finish since they were relegated in 1974, and missed out on Europe after losing the Europa League final to Tottenham. Mount's two seasons at United have been blighted by injury following his £60million move from Chelsea, but he said he is determined to prove himself under Ruben Amorim. 'The whole season hurt,' said Mount. 'But this is a new slate now. We're looking forward to performing. We want to perform as a group. We know last season wasn't good enough so now it's about kicking on. 'Going away in the summer, you're always looking at what you can do better, how you can be better for your team-mates and perform as a group, how we can all perform better. Last season it wasn't good enough. We know that, but we're kicking on now. We're ready to put right that wrong." Mount was out for four months midway through last season but returned to the starting line-up towards the end of the campaign and is determined to make himself a regular under Amorim. Despite United spending £133.5m on attacking duo Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo, Mount has backed himself to compete with them for a starting place next season. 'When you're at a club like Manchester United, there has to be that competition there to perform and as a group we want to win and we're all in that together,' said Mount. 'The new lads who have come in have been brilliant in training so far and the first couple of weeks is never easy. "It's about integrating them into the group and making them feel as comfortable as possible and I think we've all done that. They've been brilliant in training and we'll be working together to get to that goal. They know what's coming with the Premier League and the games and how difficult it is now. What they've done in the Premier League already, the amount of goals they've scored, the amount of assists they've created, that's exactly what we need in the team. 'We're working together to try and improve that, because last season we didn't hit those goals or assists as much as we could have done.' Asked how long it took him to get over United's 1-0 defeat to Spurs in Bilbao, Mount said: "Quite a long time. I've had quite a few losses in finals, so it's not easy. It never gets any easier, for sure. 'But it's about looking at what we could have improved on. In finals, little things that happen in the game, it's like they have a bigger impact. It was tight. But it's about looking forward now and really using this pre-season to work on a lot of things that maybe we didn't get enough time to do last season. 'With the schedule, with the games, and with the manager coming in halfway through the season, this pre-season period is so vital for us as a group, to work on things.'
