Bryan Mbeumo (Photo by Nathan Stirk/Getty Images)
What do you do if you’re one of the biggest clubs in England, consistently beaten and outmuscled by sides with budgets smaller than yours?
Sign their best players, of course.
First with Matheus Cunha and now with Bryan Mbeumo, Manchester United are resorting to an old tactic that their illustrious manager Sir Alex Ferguson once regularly employed. They’re targeting standout players from teams below them in the league to elevate their fortunes at Old Trafford. Carlos Tevez from West Ham, Wayne Rooney from Everton, and Rio Ferdinand from Leeds United immediately spring to mind as examples of this historical approach.
The league’s physicality has evolved. Brentford and Wolves are two teams that adapted effectively to the modern Premier League, becoming tough opponents and consistently securing their places in the division. United have already poached Wolves’ best player, and they’re now turning their attention toward Brentford’s MVP, Mbeumo.
News that Mbeumo has chosen Manchester United was significant—and rightly so. The Cameroonian forward would be a transformative signing. Although the deal is not yet finalized, securing Mbeumo would directly address the critical issue that plagued United throughout last season: a shortage of goals.
| Player | Mbeumo | Cunha | Garnacho | Zirkzee | Hojlund | Rashford | Fernandes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Games | 38 | 33 | 36 | 32 | 32 | 15 | 36 |
| Assists | 8 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 11 |
| Goals | 20 | 15 (33) | 6 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 8 |
The graph above clearly shows Mbeumo’s superiority in providing goals and assists compared to the rest of the players in United’s forward line from last season. He doesn’t just score goals; he creates them.
Bruno Fernandes is the only United player who eclipses the Brentford forward in assists, and many of those came from dead-ball situations. Beyond being a goal-scoring threat, Mbeumo would be a needle-moving signing for other reasons.
Elite Box Presence
Mbeumo goals heatmap (Photo by Fotmob)
Of the 20 goals Mbeumo scored last season, only two were from outside the box.
Since Cristiano Ronaldo’s departure and Marcus Rashford’s standout 2022-23 campaign, the Red Devils have lacked a clinical finisher inside the penalty area. Mbeumo is precisely that type of player—one who drops deep to get involved in build-up play but also possesses a sharp instinct for goal inside the six-yard box.
At present, United simply don’t have a player who can consistently be relied upon to finish from close range. Think about Brentford’s quick kick-off goals, and Mbeumo’s impressive half-volleys instantly come to mind. His ball-striking inside the box is second to none. The Cameroon international is a constant nuisance for defenders inside the penalty area—an element glaringly absent from Manchester United’s attack.
This attribute is particularly important given United’s playing style under manager Rúben Amorim. At Sporting CP, Amorim’s teams scored many goals from full-backs and midfielders advancing wide and delivering cutbacks into the penalty box.
United have struggled to fully implement Amorim’s system during the 2024-25 season, in part due to the lack of attacking players making aggressive runs into the box when the ball goes wide. Mbeumo provides exactly this threat—he’s a dangerous presence who instinctively darts into the six-yard area.
