What will Cunha and Mbeumo bring to Manchester United? | OneFootball

Defeat for Manchester United in the Europa League final cast a dark cloud over the club. The final chance at salvation from a season of struggle passed, following the defeat to Tottenham Hotspur in Bilbao.

Not only did silverware elude Ruben Amorim, but also Champions League qualification. Given the financial reward on offer, it was a setback to plans of a badly needed rebuild. This was Manchester United’s worst-ever Premier League season. The club’s first bottom-half finish in 35 years. Their lowest since being relegated from the top flight in 1975. Whatever way you view them, the statistics make for grim reading.

Ineos’ ownership has been a series of own goals and reshuffles have already seen Erik ten Hag ousted for Amorim, and both Dan Ashworth and Sir Dave Brailsford brought in and moved on.

Amorim’s role looks safe, for now, despite a torrid start to his tenure as head coach. The 40-year-old believes in his fluid system but inherited a squad largely unsuited to its demands.

In the early days of the transfer window, shoots of positivity have returned. A deal for Matheus Cunha has been agreed, while Brentford’s Bryan Mbeumo has declared Manchester as his destination of choice.

But what exactly will that duo bring?

Last season, both Cunha and Mbeumo were among the Premier League’s most productive players in mid-table sides. Combined, the duo recorded 35 goals and 13 assists in the Premier League. For context, Manchester United scored just 44 times as a collective.

Goals have been a major issue for the Red Devils. Both in terms of creation and conversion. United ranked 13th in the Premier League for xG created and under-performed even that poor record by 12.91 xG. Only Bournemouth and relegated Southampton under-performed more when it came to chance conversion. United failed to score in 11 league games under Amorim’s management.

Rasmus Hojlund has not developed as hoped, while Joshua Zirkzee endured a difficult first season in English football. No United player reached 10+ goals in the Premier League.

Amorim has also been notably surprised by the lack of athleticism in his squad and the arrivals of Cunha and Mbeumo will lift the physical profile of his squad.

Mbeumo in particular will add both speed and intensity to the attacking armoury. In 2024/25, just two players made more sprints than the Cameroonian (870), while only three clocked a higher speed (22.76mph).

Statistics circled regarding Cunha’s percentage of time spent walking earlier this year, the largest among any Premier League player. But the Brazilian’s game is built on explosiveness and he ranked third in the Wolves squad for sprint distance, sprints, and second for percentage of time spent sprinting. Having spent time at RB Leipzig and Atletico Madrid, work ethic is something that has long been drilled into the 25-year-old.

Crucially, he also looks a fine fit for Amorim’s system. He has operated in a similar formation at Wolves, floating as one of two advanced midfielders behind a sole forward. Mbeumo looks likely to join him in Amorim’s 3-4-2-1, a slight shift more centrally from his role on the right at Brentford.

The arrivals could also see Bruno Fernandes pushed into the deeper role we saw sporadically last season. While the Manchester United captain’s strengths lie in chance creation, a move to the two-man pivot would help aid the club’s progression issues.

United, clearly, have targeted Premier League proven talent to solve their issues and there’s little doubt that Cunha and Mbeumo look tick plenty of boxes. The question mark, perhaps, is whether last season’s numbers are sustainable.

Are Cunha and Mbeumo numbers sustainable at Manchester United?

Mbeumo (+6.79) and Cunha (+6.3) ranked first and second for xG over-performance in 2024/25. From a glass half full, United are seeking to add two of the Premier League’s best finishers to their squad. On the flip side, however, are these numbers anomalies?

Mbeumo had never previously scored 10 goals in a Premier League season, returning nine, nine, and four in the three seasons prior. He scored 22 times in total from an xG of 28.7, an under-performance of 6.7.

The caveat to that is that the bulk of that under-performance came in 2021/22 (-5.3), showcasing improvement as he entered his mid-twenties. Whether that improvement is consistently to the standard of 2024/25, however, appears unlikely.

Cunha has reached double digits in successive Premier League seasons and has outperformed his xG across two-and-a-half seasons at Wolves. He scored 29 league goals for Wolves, from an xG of 20.1. While last season’s rapid rise may not be sustainable long term, the data indicates that Cunha will continue to score the bulk of the chances that come his way.

Presuming a deal is done for Mbeumo, United may pay an additional tax on two players coming off of career-best campaigns, but there’s a lot to like about their business.

Cunha and Mbeumo are two players who scored 15 non-penalty goals each last season, offer set-piece threat, and can hit the ground running. They raise the physical profile of the squad and inject much needed goals and creativity.

Whether it’s enough to take Manchester United from their lowest modern ebb to the top four remains to be seen. Talent has arrived in the door before. Romelu Lukaku, Alexis Sanchez, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Angel Di Maria and more all arrived with big reputations and some with Premier League experience. None lived up to expectations.

Manchester United have signed plenty of good players across the last decade. Few have improved at Old Trafford. That will be Amorim’s true challenge as we head into the new season.

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