Injury number...?
Feels like his 23rd or something but regardless of the number, Mason Mount has confirmed that he will be sidelined for the foreseeable future.
The MUFC No 7 took to Instagram to voice his 'frustration' about being injured once more.
The midfielder said:
"During the last game I picked up a minor muscle issue. I'll be out for a few games.
I worked hard to get my fitness back to where it needs to be, I felt sharp and ready.
I wanted you to hear it from me how frustrated I am."
Reports are saying that Mount has a hamstring injury and will be out for five weeks. This was the reason for his halftime substitution against Brighton last Saturday after starting his second straight match of the season.
Final Thoughts
I like Mason Mount. I do.
But, but, I never understood why we were linked with him last year, I never understood why we signed him, I never understood why Erik ten Hag gave him the number 7 shirt and I can't understand where all these injuries are coming from.
At Chelsea, Mount only missed 18 games during his time in London. At United, he's already be out for 27 games in just over a season. He was at Chelsea for four years.
When looking at that injury history, there's also no indication that he was injury prone before. He had his issues at Chelsea but never this serious nor consistent.
Last campaign, he had four separate periods of absence thanks to injuries that caused him to miss majority of the season.
That was considered unlucky.
Now that he's out again, is it ill-luck once more? Can it be ill-luck again?
For a 25-year-old to be suffering this amount of injuries is a concern. Is he becoming the new Luke Shaw?
The frustrating thing is that he looked to have overcome his injury struggles of last season at the start of this. Throughout pre-season and in these first two games, there were no signs of him having any problems.
That halftime substitution at Brighton though, was the first indicator that maybe all is not as it seems.
It was a surprise to see him start as a first-teamer this season but as he has been regularly chosen, we all agree that he has been one of our better players.
The way he's been deployed as a false 9 and how effective he has been in the new high press shows that he's definitely capable of playing in Erik ten Hag's side. Perhaps that's the reason why the Dutchman was so desperate for his signature and gave him our most iconic shirt.
However, I do think his injury could work in our favor. Last season, when he was out, I believe it helped us pick a more balanced lineup (whenever we could) as if he was available, he simply had to play given his wages, number, and manager desperately wanting him.
Who would he have played for instead?
So far this season, it's thanks to him that we haven't seen Joshua Zirkzee from the start of games. Mount's role as a false 9 has kept the new striker on the bench as regardless of how well Mount has done up top, I do believe that we are better off with a striker instead. This gives us a chance to see whether that is true or whether it's better when Mount is in the team.
Whatever the case is though, unlucky or not, these injuries are a real problem.
Background Image: Mason Mount against Brighton | Creator: Eddie Keogh | Credit: Getty Images Copyright: 2024 Getty Images via Man Utd News