Mason Mount becomes eighth most expensive signing in Man Utd history

Mason Mount could do with a new PR team.

The Chelsea academy graduate bade farewell to Blues supporters via a monotonous, hostage-style video message that savvy viewers established had been recorded well in advance due to Mount’s Gazza-inspired barnet which is no more.

The England international has joined Manchester United in a £60m deal after refusing to extend his Chelsea contract due to various concerns. Mount had emerged as a star man in west London following his breakthrough 2019/20 campaign and, while he’s a talent who divides opinion, there’s no doubt that the Blues are worse off without him.

However, Chelsea’s loss is United’s gain and the Red Devils have made Mount one of the most expensive signings in their history.

Clubs were put on high alert after Mount rebuffed a new deal from the Blues and it became clear towards the end of the 2022/23 season the crafty midfielder would be leaving this summer despite Mauricio Pochettino’s arrival.

Arsenal and Liverpool both registered an interest but United quickly established themselves as the frontrunners. The Gunners and Reds chased alternative targets to leave the Red Devils with a free run at the Chelsea man.

With his contract at Stamford Bridge expiring in 2024, United had plenty of leverage in negotiations but Chelsea certainly made them work for Mount’s signature. The Blues demanded £65m; a fee United were hesitant to reach due to Financial Fair Play concerns.

The Manchester club tabled offers worth £40m, £50m and £55m, all of which were rejected by Chelsea. It would take a fourth bid of £60m (initial £55m plus £5m in add-ons) to broker a deal with the Blues.

With personal terms never an issue, a medical was quickly scheduled and Mount is now officially a Man Utd player.

United supporters will be pleading Mount fares better than the vast majority of the names listed on the above table. The Red Devils have a pretty woeful success rate when it comes to big-money signings.

Discounting Mount, how many of United’s top ten most expensive signings were or have been unmitigated successes? Bruno Fernandes is certainly one, while Casemiro enjoyed a stellar debut season. We’ll say two then. The vast majority, including Paul Pogba and Harry Maguire, enjoyed up and down spells at Old Trafford, while Angel Di Maria was a distinct flop.

Fred certainly hasn’t shown enough to suggest he was worth over £50m despite racking up over 200 appearances for the club. Romelu Lukaku started brightly before fading, Jadon Sancho’s career is yet to ignite and United massively overpaid the odds to sign Antony from Ajax.

Mount, who has become United’s eighth most expensive signing ever, will be hoping to follow in the footsteps of Bruno at Old Trafford, not Angel.

LISTEN NOW

On this week’s edition of Talking Transfers, part of the 90min podcast network, Scott Saunders is joined by Toby Cudworth, Graeme Bailey and Sean Walsh to discuss Man Utd’s priorities after agreeing a deal for Mason Mount, the latest on Arsenal’s move for Declan Rice, Tottenham’s targets and more!

If you can’t see this embed, click here to listen to the podcast!