Manchester United have entered the final international break of this season with Champions League qualification in sight
Bruno Fernandes and Mason Mount have had contrasting seasons for Manchester United
Bruno Fernandes and Mason Mount have had contrasting seasons for Manchester United(Image: Andrew J. Clark/ISI Photos/ISI Photos via Getty Images)
View Image
Manchester United's campaign has been a rollercoaster with the Reds once again finishing the season with a different manager to the one that started it. However, the decision to sack Ruben Amorim and replace him with Michael Carrick in January has been fully justified.
As the Reds enter the final international break before the end of the season, they sit comfortably inside the top four and look destined to return to the Champions League. Carrick has lost one and drawn two of his first 10 matches in interim charge to power United up the table and strengthen his bid to become the permanent head coach.
With this in mind, MEN Sport has taken a look at the six winners and losers from this season as United close in on a return to Europe.
Winners
Bruno Fernandes
Where else to start but with the captain. Fernandes has been exceptional for United and with a better team around him, he has been busting records left, right and centre.
This season, he has reached 100 plus goals and assists for United in just 319 appearances. A truly remarkable feat considering the Reds have underperformed for most of his Old Trafford career.
Fernandes has racked up eight goals and 17 assists this season and has made any suggestion that United should have cashed in on him in the summer look foolish.
Casemiro
It was not that long ago United fans and critics were adamant Casemiro should be sold off at a loss just to get his wage off the books. The midfielder really struggled under Erik ten Hag and looked out of place in the Premier League last season.
But this campaign has been one of redemption for the Brazilian. He has been undroppable in central midfield and his goal return has been astonishing.
This has been his highest goalscoring season in the league (seven). Casemiro has repaired his reputation and will leave United as a fan favourite. A truly sensational turnaround.
Kobbie Mainoo
Speaking of turnarounds, if this list had been made during the Amorim era, Mainoo would have been suffering. He was shunned by the previous head coach but has blossomed since the Portuguese departed.
Alongside Casemiro, the midfielder has become undroppable and has turned his United career around. We understand Mainoo will sign a new contract before the end of the season that shall give him a wage increase in line with his status in the first team.
His form has also earned him a recall to the England squad this month and, barring injury, he should be on the plane to the World Cup.
Losers
Manuel Ugarte
With Casemiro and Mainoo holding down the midfield, Ugarte has been pushed to the fringes. When he has come on, the Uruguay international has looked rusty and United have looked worse.
The lack of regular football does not help Ugarte in these scenarios but he is nowhere near taking Casemiro or Mainoo's spot in the starting XI. In the summer, there is a good chance the 24-year-old leaves Old Trafford as part of the midfield overhaul.
That would be a shock to no-one and would close a disappointing chapter for him.
Tyrell Malacia
A similar story to Ugarte for Malacia. There's a world where the Dutch defender does not miss the entirety of the 2023/24 season with a knee injury and flourishes at United.
However, that long-term injury scuppered his Old Trafford career and he will leave at the end of the campaign. In hindsight, United should have let Malacia go in January.
But, United's decision to block a move to an unnamed Turkey club has left him wallowing on the bench for the remainder of the season. His cameo and role in Newcastle's winner at the start of this month summed up an awful few years for Malacia.
Mason Mount
Mount would have been closer to being a winner had Amorim stayed. Under the former boss, Mount was a favourite and you could see the midfielder was playing some of his best football for a number of years.
However, Amorim's exit coupled with another injury for Mount has scuppered his momentum. In a 4-2-3-1, the 27-year-old is in direct competition with Fernandes and, as Mainoo discovered, there is only one winner in that battle.
This summer will be very interesting for the midfielder as we await to see if he stays or pursues more regular football elsewhere.
Content cannot be displayed without consent