English Legend Frank Lampard’s Take on Mason Mount’s Struggles: “Where Does He Fit?”
Frank Lampard has backed his former player, Mason Mount to show his worth at Man Utd when the club is more structured and cohesive, but questions whether Bruno Fernandes can play alongside the Englishman.
Lampard backs Man Utd midfielder Mason Mount
Mason Mount made the move from rivals Chelsea in the summer in a £55m move to Man Utd. However, injuries have hindered the former Champions League winner to only four starts in the season and he struggles to influence proceedings on the pitch – with the midfielder yet to register a goal for the club.
Speaking on Mount’s struggles to the Stick to Football podcast, Lampard mentioned his injury issues and reminisced about his time managing the midfielder at Derby County:
“A bit of injuries as well, to be fair to him, and a team that’s struggling and has a big negativity [around it] in certain ways.From my point of view, because I took him to Derby, he changed everything there for me really. Him and [Fikayo] Tomori and [Harry] Wilson, but Mason particularly, his level in training was a high, high level.
Pressing brilliant, off-the-ball stuff brilliant, if you want to give him information he takes it like that [clicks fingers]. Will jump [forward to press], will recover, will jump, will recover. A great lad, good technically, very good technically.
So I think he’s really high level in loads of those areas and a proper lad, as I say, you could give him anything. I think he’s probably suffered from a change into a bad [situation].”
Frank Lampard – Stick to Football podcast
He spoke on the drive exhibited by Mount:
“He’s very driven. If you drop him, his face goes straight away – he’s one of those. Not in a bad way, but he’s like, “I want to show you”. He will absolutely want to show you [he deserves to play], he’s very determined like that.
I’m not just saying that because he’s my lad a bit and I’ve had a relationship on the pitch in terms of managing him, but I do think he’ll come good because of that and because of his talent.”
He continued about Mount and his place at the club:
“And once the team gets more structure, because I do think it’s important for a structure of a team to say you’re an aggressive 8 or you’re in a 10. And the only worry I had when he went to Man United was, where do Bruno Fernandes and him fit?
You’ve also got Casemiro, and I know it’s starting to develop and change away from that already as an idea, but you kind of go: where do you fit?
And I think when you are – and this is not to dig Mason or Man United out for bringing him in – but I think when you get a player of that level for that amount of money, you’ve got to go: this is the plan. That’s what I’d want to hear, and my question would be: where does he fit?”
What is Mason Mount’s best position?
There have been many doubts and questions from fans and pundits alike over Mount and his best position at the club – with many wondering how the Englishman could fit in a system that also has to fit Bruno Fernandes, a player who also operates in the 10 role.
When Liverpool icon Jamie Carragher suggested that Mount will effectively be played in central midfield as an 8, Lampard continued:
“Which he’s not. I would say he’s probably slightly more advanced than me in general play, I liked to arrive from deeper, drop down and play a bit more and then arrive from deeper.
I think he’s higher. In Tuchel’s team that won the Champions League he was a 10, highest sort of 10 on the side, two 10s and then a 9, and I think he could do that better than I could. I liked to come from deeper.
He can play as a single 10 as well, but, again, you’re going into where the captain of the football club, Bruno Fernandes, is playing – who hardly gets injured, as far as I see it. So I think that will be a difficult one that’s a conundrum to solve as a team to get him into the team in his best position.”
While concluding, Lampard spoke about Mason Mount and his fit within ten Hag’s system:
“I do think that Manchester United do a lot of their best work on the counter-attack, turning teams round, with Marcus Rashford going bang, bang, bang.Maybe Mace has got to get to grips with what that looks like for him – all that high pressing stuff is great if you’re in a high-pressing team, but they’re not a massively high-pressing team.
All this stuff in tight areas up the pitch – which I think he’s good at and can get better at and can be more effective in the box and score more goals – I don’t think they stay there loads.
Their best stuff, when I’ve coached against United, is we’ll probably have a lot of the ball but be careful of [counter attacks] and I’m not sure Mace is one that is going to be joining Marcus, it’s not easy for anybody – it’s a different style of play.”
Mount’s underwhelming start
Erik ten Hag was heavily involved in the transfer of Mason Mount in the summer of 2023, and part of the pitch delivered to the midfielder was the role the Englishman would have in the Man Utd setup.
Despite obvious questions over the compatibility between Mount and Bruno Fernandes in the same starting XI, Erik ten Hag presumably had a plan. However, questions have arisen whether the two players are too similar to play together after all.
Despite the buffer period of integration for the new signing, a 5-week injury halted any momentum Mount could have garnered. Upon Mason’s return to the first XI, Man Utd were already in poor form – something which served to hinder him even more.
However, with Mount’s recent return from injury sustained in late November, the midfielder can start anew. Only having 400 minutes under his belt, it may just be that fans haven’t yet seen what the midfielder is capable of in this setup.
