Manchester United’s 2025/26 campaign was off to a losing start over the weekend against Arsenal, despite a strong performance.
The Premier League is back and Manchester United are straight into the losing column, but coming away from the game it looks more positive than negative.
Ruben Amorim was happy with his team’s performance against title contenders Arsenal, and ultimately United deserved to win the game, being comfortably the better team.
While United had several top performers, there was one name which stood out for his incredible quality going forward, that being Matheus Cunha.
Following his debut, Cunha was lauded by Brazilian press as he truly did bring ‘Jogo Bonito’ to Old Trafford, in particular with one stroke of genius when he waltzed through the entire Arsenal team before running out of steam just before his shot.
Cunha was running rings around Arsenal with his dribbling, and will feel that on another day he would have scored at least once.
Manchester United forward Matheus Cunha dribbles past Arsenal's Ben White.
Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images
Matheus Cunha had seriously impressive debut for Manchester United
It was a brilliant debut for Cunha, proving exactly why United swooped so quickly for his signature this summer.
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Rio Ferdinand was full of praise for Cunha after his immediate impact. Meanwhile, club captain Bruno Fernandes labelled Cunha ‘dangerous’ but warned that there is plenty more to come.
Interestingly, Cunha was the quickest player on the pitch during United vs Arsenal, as his actions led to Old Trafford erupting more than once, teaching fans to be on the edge of their seat everytime he got the ball, as his stats from SofaScore showcases.
Matheus Cunha sofascore
Matheus Cunha sofascore
Cunha should have won a penalty alongside having a couple of chances saved by David Raya, which is testament to the constant threat that he was throughout the entire game.
Cunha was United’s best player, and it is likely that Fulham will already be sweating over the prospect of facing him next weekend.
Cunha proves himself worthy of Manchester United’s number 10 shirt
Cunha’s performance is even more impressive when considering that he did it with the added pressure of wearing the number 10 shirt at Old Trafford.
Cunha was handed the number 10 shirt by United this summer, with Marcus Rashford being stripped of his number. To wear a shirt with such a famous and reputable lineage is not for the faint of heart, with Cunha demanding the 10.
Over the years, wearing one of United’s more famous shirt numbers has often proved too much for players to handle.
Rasmus Hojlund – 11 and 9
Mason Mount – 7
Romelu Lukaku – 9
Memphis Depay – 7
Angel Di Maria – 7
Adnan Januzaj – 11
Antonio Valencia – 7
However, already Cunha has shown himself to be worthy of the 10, following in the footsteps of his childhood hero Wayne Rooney.
Cunha told United that he plays like Rooney, and there were definitely signs of his against Arsenal, but there is so much more to come.
United might have found a new hero.