By GETHIN HICKS, SPORTS REPORTER
Published: 10:08 EST, 16 December 2025 | Updated: 10:09 EST, 16 December 2025
Former Manchester United midfielder Paul Ince has heaped praise onto Matheus Cunha, even comparing him to Old Trafford legend Eric Cantona.
Cunha, signed in the summer for a fee of £62.5million from Wolves, enjoyed arguably his best performance in a United shirt on Monday night in his side's thrilling 4-4 draw with Bournemouth.
Deployed as a No 9, the Brazilian was at the centre of much of the hosts' attacking work and scored his second goal of the season - the Red Devils' fourth on the night - with a precise finish late on.
It was a performance which impressed former United, Liverpool and Inter Milan midfielder Ince who, speaking to Covers.com World Cup betting, described the forward as a 'top player'.
'Matheus Cunha reminds me of Eric Cantona with the way he plays,' said the Frenchman's former team-mate.
'Technically, Cunha is very good and can run with the ball at his feet. He might not be the fastest player but he's very powerful and roams all over the park as we saw against Bournemouth last night and he shares those traits with Cantona.
Former Manchester United midfielder Paul Ince has heaped praise onto Matheus Cunha
Ince described the midfielder as a 'top player' and said he looks like he belongs at Old Trafford already
The former England international even compared him to United great Eric Cantona
'Cunha is a top player. He's improved leaps and bounds since joining Manchester United. £62.5million was a substantial sum to spend on a player, but he's already proving to be a great buy.'
Ince added: 'Bryan Mbeumo has done well in a United shirt too, but Cunha has hit the ground running a bit quicker. Cunha plays with an attitude where it looks like he belongs at Old Trafford which is great to see.
'The team are very reliant on him - if he plays well, the team does too. To be a great United player like Cantona, you must have a fantastic mentality - and Cunha has that.
'He's proven he's able to play under the weight of the shirt and the pressure of the badge week in, week out. We've seen plenty of players in the recent past who have come and gone having succumbed to the pressure.'
Before his stellar performance against the Cherries, Cunha had come in for criticism from some quarters for a lack of goals.
The Brazilian's tally of two this season is indeed beneath what some had expected given he bagged 15 in a Wolves shirt last campaign.
And Ruben Amorim admitted earlier this month that Cunha had been left frustrated by his poor goal scoring form, despite impressing with his overall game.
Amorim said: ‘It’s normal in any profession when you are exposed to it. I don’t read it, I protect myself. I don’t watch TV when they are talking about Manchester United. Not because I don’t agree, a lot of time I do, but it’s a way of me being healthy.
‘My feeling as a coach is enough, I don’t need other feelings. The only way is protect myself. Of course I lose money from sponsors on Instagram, for my protection of my family and living a normal life is not worth some pounds.
‘I protect myself and nobody is more tough than me when we lose and when we don’t play well. Nowadays it’s really normal to have that abuse so it’s the only way to survive.’
The new recruit is however back in goals ahead of a crucial festive period for United in which they face Aston Villa, Newcastle and a return fixture against his former club Wolves.