Manchester United midfielder Mason Mount played 68 minutes of his debut against Wolves.
Erik ten Hag decided to substitute Mason Mount along with Alejandro Garnacho. It was less of a slight on Mount, and more of a verdict on the fact his own tactical approach was not working. Something had to change.
Jadon Sancho and Christian Eriksen came on, and United ended up winning the game 1-0 with Raphael Varane the surprise scorer.
There was criticism of £55 million signing Mount on social media, driven by Chelsea fans desperate to see him fail, and supporters of Arsenal and Liverpool, two clubs Mount rejected.
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Merson says Mount criticism wrong
In his column for Sportskeeda, pundit Paul Merson has stuck up for Mason Mount, which is good to see.
He even claimed Erik ten Hag was wrong to take Mount off at Old Trafford.
Merson said: “I know Mason Mount drew a lot of criticism after the game against Wolves. But then again, which Manchester United player did well in that game? I think it’s too early to pass judgment on him.
“He’s a really good player when the game opens up and Ten Hag should have waited a bit before taking him off against Wolves.”
Mason Mount first league start since February
There is some important context around Mason Mount being substituted. It was his first Premier League start since February.
This comes after injury derailed his final few months at Chelsea. With that in mind, it was improbable Mount would play all 90 minutes.
Erik ten Hag’s tactics against Wolves also did not work. It was imperative take off Mount or Bruno Fernandes, and the manager was always going to keep the faith with his captain.
Merson is right that Mount deserves less scrutiny. There are players at others clubs who had underwhelming debuts and there was not a peep in the media.
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