The Ineos review has revealed a surprisingly key figure for Manchester United next season

As Ineos weighed Erik ten Hag’s future during his end-of-season review at Manchester United, he took several factors into account. There were positives for Ten Hag and there were mitigations, reasons for a desperate Premier League campaign that can be rectified next season.

They focused primarily on injury issues, but also a sense that business done in the 2023 summer transfer window had an eye on long-term results. There was an acceptance that Andre Onana and Rasmus Hojlund had time to settle in and that Mason Mount’s season was ruined by injury.

Ineos expects more to come from the £163m trio and that the full benefit of the investment is yet to be felt. Onana certainly improved as the campaign went on and Hojlund had a couple of spells where he looked like he was ready to lead the line.

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The biggest disappointment will be reserved for Mount, who started the season slowly after his £55m move from Chelsea, lost his place in the team and then struggled with his fitness. If there is any reason for Onana and Hojlund to take time to settle into a new league and country, the England international was expected to slot into midfield.

Instead, he managed just 20 appearances and eight starts for the club, contributing just one goal and one assist. His only start after 1 November came in the 4-0 defeat at Crystal Palace towards the end of the season and he only came on in the 89th minute in the FA Cup Final at Wembley.

The midfield didn’t even thrive without him, but that was down to both structural and personnel issues. The role he was signed for has now been filled by Kobbie Mainoo, a definite positive for the Ten Hag, and Mount has a challenge to get back into the team.

Mainoo has become an up-and-coming presence in the center of the pitch and Bruno Fernandes is a guaranteed starter. A new owned midfielder is likely to arrive this summer. That means Mount’s role will likely be on the bench for now.

However, Ineos will not let go of a £55m signing and if he fails again for a second successive season then it will reflect poorly on Ten Hag’s judgement. The manager struggled to sign him after tracking him on loan in the Eredivisie seven years ago.

In a way, Mount became a key figure during the end-of-season review. When Sir Jim Ratcliffe met Thomas Tuchel, the former Chelsea boss highlighted the success he had in getting the best out of Mount at Stamford Bridge and said he can repeat that trick at Old Trafford. Mount played the best football of his career under Tuchel and set up the winning goal in the 2021 Champions League final.

The promise of extracting more from a key signing wasn’t enough to win Tuchel over, but the mention of Mount as a mitigating factor for last season’s performance levels still seems telling. It is now up to Ten Hag to get the most out of the 25-year-old.

As a player who has yet to reach his theoretical peak and an England international signed for big money, there is pressure on Mount to deliver value. Ten Hag signed him to join their midfield and although his first season was cancelled, it is clear that there is now demand to make this deal a success in season two.