I wanted to include them in my 5 Things Learned post from the win over Brighton but I felt that that wouldn't do them justice as they deserve a post all to themselves.
They have been UNREAL!
What a pair of signings Mbeumo and Cunha have turned out to be. I know it's only 10 games into their first campaign at United but it feels to me as if they've been here for years.
How easily they've slotted in shouldn't go unnoticed and is something that I believe has been key in their brilliant performances.
I felt I had to discuss how good they've been for United not just for the team but for the club as well. They're the perfect examples of the type of players we need at the moment.
Smart Signings
This is why they were smart signings.
Given the position we're in as a club and team, I don't think risks needed to be taken. Sesko and Lammens for example, are risks due to their youth and relative inexperience even if performances have been pretty darn good. Yet they remain unproven espeically in the PL.
With Mbeumo and Cunha, that isn't the case.
This duo have been in the Premier League for quite a few years meaning that they already have the wherewithal of the hardest league in the world. As they are in their mid-twenties as well, their age is perfect: not too old, not too young.
This level of experience and PL-proven-ness is what has allowed them to bed into the team so easily. There was no settling in period which made things simpler for the manager.
Thanks to all of this, they've removed that risk factor of whether they will work out in the Prem or not. Having performed superbly for the likes of Brentford and Wolves, we know they are more than capable of playing in this league and performing at a high level.
System Players
On top of the age, experience and being PL-proven, they suit Amorim's regularly criticized 3-4-3 although some of that criticism has weirdly died down now that he's won three games in a row.
Strange 😏.
Both Cunha and Mbeumo have been used to such a formation before having done so for Wolves and Brentford albeit occasionally rather than on a consistent basis.
But just the fact that they already had an idea of how to play in such a formation meant less time to get used to one that isn't as widely used in football compared to it's 4-at-the-back brothers.
This is a key aspect in their signings because as this 3-4-3 is unknown to us at United, we needed to bring in players who did know how to operate in this formation. The current squad have no idea how to and so to have two players who do, makes a difference.
These two are also goal threats. Cunha had 15 goals and 6 assists while Mbeumo had 20 goals and 9 assists last season. United have struggled to create and then score over the past few years and have become very reliant on Bruno to do much of the creating, assiting and scoring.
That does not have to be the case anymore as we've already seen. The assists have actually been shared out across the team as in our last three wins, Mbeumo, Casemiro, Sesko, Amad, Shaw, HEAVEN and Bruno have all grabbed assists. Mbeumo is also our top scorer with 5 goals in all competitions.
Character
The attitude of these two players are exactly what's needed at a club like ours.
The personality of Cunha is one that I feel has also brought good vibes to the dressing because he seems like a guy who is always positive, happy and is ever willing to have fun although he's not only here to have a good time nor does he come across as a bit of an arse.
Mbeumo's more reserved tone isn't a bad thing either.
For quite some time, we've have very loud and flashy players who get involved in the wrong shit and have very haughty personalities that I don't really like. It disrupted the dressing room and things became very unsettling.
Someone like Mbeumo just keeps to himself, is a true professional, cooks during matches and then goes home.
No more, no less.
They also work so hard and that is not something we've said of previous players.
Having such characters in the squad can change the atmosphere and overall feel of the club. We can see just how much these two players are appreciated and valued both from the rest of the team and the fans with how everyone has reacted to their performances and personalities.
We utterly adore them ❤.
BIGGEST Change
What has stood out to me the most though, is not the system suitability, player profiles or their attitude (although all those things are important) but it's more the difference they make in certain games.
I'm not talking the City's, Chelsea's or Liverpool's but the ones where we are the favourites when taking on the 'lesser' sides like the Sunderland's and Brighton's.
Over the years, we've learned that United are more than capable of holding their own in the bigger matches as we can get unexpected wins much like at Anfield. We have this ability to show up due to the sheer size of the fixture but mainly because the pressure is on the opposition rather than us.
When things are the other way round though, and it's United who have that pressure, things don't go so well.
We've often backed up a strong performance in a derby or at Chelsea with a disappointing result in a home game against a mid-table side. This was why the game against Brighton was seen as more important than Liverpool in order to test whether we've truly turned a corner.
We passed that test and the corner was turned.
And I believe that this was principally down to Cunha and Mbeumo.
These were the type of games that they thrived in whilst at Wolves and Brentford. These games were the ones that helped make their name.
We haven't had such players at United. Instead, we used to have selfish, greedy, head down shoot first ask questions later-type players who wanted to be Ronaldinho.
Cunha and Mbeumo aren't those players. They are ones who play as a team and make the most out of great situations. Like could you imagine if we had Garnacho, Antony or Rashford instead of our two new recruits 😐. We were never going to score those 3 goals with them.
Cunha and Mbeumo were used to such situations at their previous clubs in that they had to breakdown or get through fellow mid-table sides. This is why it wasn't so unusual to them when coming up against Sunderland and Brighton.
You can look at their mentalities and attitudes here as well: they just keep going.
There was no dropping of the heads once Brighton got their 2 goals and as we saw, Mbeumo actually scored another. I find it very hard to think that had he not been at United, such a situation wouldn't have come about.
Another great example is the defeat to Grimsby.
Both Cunha and Mbeumo missed the crucial spot kicks that ultimately got us eliminated. Yet the next game saw Mbeumo score against Burnley and after recovering from his injury and indeed overall this season, Cunha has performed at 7/10 at least.
This type of attitude also elevates the team as it can affect the rest of the squad.
How many times in the past has such moments affected players to the point where they couldn't pick their hedads up again?
Speaking of the Cameroonian, notice how he is always (italics) on the field?
Mbeumo has featured in all 10 games, started and completed seven of the league matches, and unlike Cunha, Mount and Sesko, never gets rotated.
I feel like he's already become one of Amorim's most trusted players. He and Cunha also give everything on the pitch which is something that the manager loves in his players. This is why someone like Dalot plays as much as he does in my opinion: he's an absolute work horse despite the quality.
They are just absolutely tops, aren't they? ☺
Final Thoughts
I did have my doubts about whether we did need two no 10s and earlier in the season, I did feel as though I would've sacrificed one for a midfielder but as time has gone on, I can safely say that I was wrong!
I am soooooo happy that we have both Cunha and Mbeumo. They have been unbelievable and when you look at all they've brought to the table, you can see that both were needed.
Yes when you have so many no 10s and you do need that midfielder, one does question why you would go and buy two new attacking midfielders, keep the others and neglect that midfielder, but after 10 games, maybe we're seeing why.
Casemiro and Bruno have been good as a midfield two in recent weeks meaning that perhaps they can do a job on a weekly basis and we don't need to think that buying both Cunha and Mbeumo was a mistake.
They have to be two of the best signings of the season. All that's left to say is:
Thank you Brentford 🤝.
Thank you Wolves 🤝.
What have you made of Cunha and Mbeumo? How impressed have you been with how much they've impacted us all at United?
Can't believe we have these two players at our club 😭😭.
Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo have made a massive difference to Man Utd | Image via Manchester United official X (@ManUtd)