Manchester United saw their patchy start to the 2023/24 Premier League campaign continue following a dramatic late defeat to Arsenal.
Having secured two unconvincing victories against Wolverhampton Wanderers and Nottingham Forest which were sandwiched between a woeful loss to Tottenham Hotspur, Erik ten Hag was looking for his team to lay down a marker and come away from the Emirates with all three points.
With just two minutes to go, Alejandro Garnacho latched on to a Bruno Fernandes through ball and calmly struck the ball past Aaron Ramsdale in the Arsenal goal for what looked like an unlikely winner.
It was ruled offside however, and the Gunners went and took full advantage, as goals from Declan Rice and Gabriel Jesus turned the match on its head and sent Arsenal into the international break in high spirits.
Ten Hag will rue missed chances while his summer arrivals haven’t quite hit their stride yet.
Who did Manchester United sign during the summer?
Following a relatively decent maiden season in charge of United, the Dutchman looked set to have a summer clear out at Old Trafford, replacing deadwood with quality as he aimed to build on a third-place finish and a League Cup triumph.
In came Andre Onana, Mason Mount and Rasmus Hojlund, while veteran defender Jonny Evans signed a one-year contract with the club.
These signings are hardly the rebuild that the Red Devils require and although the likes of Fred, Dean Henderson and Anthony Elanga have departed, raising funds, players such as Harry Maguire are still at the club.
Out of the new signings, Onana is the only one to have played all four competitive matches this season so far as Hojlund and Mount have suffered from injuries early in the campaign.
How has Mason Mount performed for Man United?
The chase for Mount led to a saga that dominated the early stages of the summer transfer window but United finally captured their man for a fee that could reach £60m.
Having emerged through the youth ranks at Chelsea, he enjoyed spells at Vitesse and Derby County before becoming a mainstay at the Blues, going on to make nearly 200 appearances for the Stamford Bridge side.
With just a year left on his deal, Mauricio Pochettino decided to cash in now rather than lose him for a reduced fee in January, yet his performances up north haven’t quite lived up to expectations.
During his two Premier League ties so far, he has an average Sofascore rating of 6.65, while averaging just 28.5 touches, one key pass and creating zero big chances.
Against Spurs, Ten Hag deployed him alongside Casemiro in a deeper role, yet his display left a lot to be desired. The midfielder completed just 15 successful passes during his 85 minutes on the pitch while winning only one total duel and losing possession six times.
With Marcus Rashford operating on the left wing and Bruno Fernandes a guaranteed starter for the number ten role, Mount may have to be content with being played in a deeper position, yet his first few performances for the club won't have pleased Ten Hag.
Should he have perhaps signed someone else for the role? French midfielder Khephren Thuram was linked with a move during the later stages of the window and would have been far better suited to that deeper role.
Did Man United nearly sign sign Khephren Thuram?
With United showing interest in defender Jean Clair-Todibo, they sent scouts to monitor his performance for OGC Nice against Lille.
He wasn’t the only player who the club were keeping tabs on, however, as Thuram was another player who the Red Devils were also watching during the same match.
He was valued at around €40m (£34m) by the French side but Liverpool tried to launch a late move to secure the player before the transfer window closed last week.
No move materialised for the youngster, and he still remains at Nice, until January at least, but there is no doubt he would have been a better signing than Mount.
How good is Khephren Thuram?
The 22-year-old has shone for his club side over the previous 12 months and when compared to positional peers across Europe's top five leagues, he ranks in the top 4% for progressive carries per 90 (3.45), the top 5% for successful take-ons per 90 (1.8) and in the top 12% for touches in the attacking penalty area per 90 (2.51).
That clearly demonstrates his attacking qualities, despite mainly operating from the centre of midfield.
Blocking the ball
Does not dive into tackles
Dribbling
Likes to play short passes
Key Passes
Stats via WhoScored
In contrast, Mount, when compared to positional peers, ranks in the top 20% for progressive carries per 90 (2.05), and the top 7% for touches in the attacking penalty area per 90 (2.88), yet ranks outside the top 40% for successful take-ons per 90 (0.78), indicating that Thuram could be an upgrade.
The Frenchman also offers more defensively, registering more tackles (1.5 v 1.4), interceptions (1.1 v 0.3), total duels won (3.8 v 3.5) and losing possession fewer times (8.5 v 11.5) per game during their respective league seasons during 2022/23.
Renowned scout Jacek Kulig hailed Thuram back in January for his “significant upper-body strength” while also claiming he is a “proactive & tenacious tackler” which enables him to not only win the ball back but to also come out on top in the majority of his duels.
From the evidence, Ten Hag should have made a more concrete effort to sign the young French "monster" – as he was dubbed by Opta's Sam McGuire. Indeed, there is no doubt he is going to develop into a truly world-class player.
His form in Ligue 1 this term has been excellent too, averaging a Sofascore rating of 7.6 across just three matches while creating two big chances, averaging 2.7 key passes per game, and winning a staggering 6.3 total duels each match.
He is able to contribute effectively at both ends of the pitch more successfully than Mount and if Thuram carries on this current form, his value will surely increase with each passing match.
Ten Hag may regret his decision not to lure him to Manchester, especially with the aforementioned fee of £34m hardly breaking the bank, and he could turn out to be a player who got away from United in the coming months.