Football writer Alex Keble says the signing of Bryan Mbeumo confirms that Manchester United's future is all about fast transitions.
The mood music is changing fast. Manchester United have already secured two big summer signings to support Ruben Amorim’s overhaul, and the second capture is even better than the first.
Signing Bryan Mbeumo, and fending off competition for him from UEFA Champions League clubs, is a bigger statement of intent than it might at first appear.
Because make no mistake, Mbeumo is one of the best forwards in the Premier League.
Man Utd fans might not have to wait long to see the forward in action, as the club travel to the United States for the Premier League Summer Series, where they will be playing AFC Bournemouth, Everton and West Ham United, starting on 27 July.
Before that commences, let's take a deeper dive into the stats behind Mbeumo - one of the Premier League's best.
His raw numbers alone tell us as much. The 25-year-old Cameroon international registered 27 Premier League goals and assists in 2024/25, the third-most in the division behind Mohamed Salah and Alexander Isak.
What Mbeumo will bring to Old Trafford
Mbeumo’s clinical goalscoring is a major boost for goal-shy Man Utd.
The tactical fit is vital, as we explain below, but it’s important first of all to touch on the simple headline reasoning behind signing Mbeumo: he is a clinical footballer of the kind Man Utd desperately need.
The Red Devils scored just 44 Premier League goals last season, their lowest-ever figure in the Premier League era, and underperformed their Expected Goals (xG) of 53.5 by 9.5, the second-biggest margin in the division.
They need players who will finish their opportunities, but Mbeumo goes further - scoring half-chances and better.
Mbeumo's 24/25 highlights
Mbeumo netted 15 non-penalty Premier League goals, the sixth-most in the division, from a non-penalty xG of 7.5, overperforming by 7.5, more than any other player.
Mbeumo's non-penalty xG v non-penalty goals
| Player | Non-penalty xG |
| Bryan Mbeumo | +7.5 |
|---|---|
| Matheus Cunha | +6.4 |
| Chris Wood | +6.0 |
| Alex Iwobi | +4.3 |
| Jarrod Bowen | +4.2 |
Second on this list is new team-mate Matheus Cunha, Man Utd’s first signing of the summer. Amorim clearly knows that he needs ruthless forwards.
Mbeumo’s creativity is an underrated asset that could support Cunha.
Mbeumo has amassed 28 assists across four Premier League seasons at Brentford, averaging seven per campaign, and yet those numbers should be a lot higher if surrounded by more clinical players – such as Cunha.
The numbers here are startling. Mbeumo tops the Premier League charts in 2024/25 for Expected Assists (xA), with 9.3, and ranks fourth for big chances created (17).
Some of this is accounted for by Mbeumo’s set-piece delivery, but even when isolating open-play stats he scores well: ninth for successful open-play crosses (23) and while his 59 open-play passes into the opposition box ranks 10th.
For context, Cole Palmer and Trent Alexander-Arnold only produced marginally more, with 64 and 65 respectively.
Mbeumo’s creativity 2024/25
| 24/25 | PL rank | |
| Expected Assists (xA) | 9.3 | 1st |
|---|---|---|
| Big chances created | 17 | 4th |
| Successful open-play crosses | 23 | 9th |
| Open-play passes into the box | 59 | 10th |
Style and positioning reveal Amorim’s tactical priorities
Mbeumo is an elite Premier League player in terms of both goalscoring and creativity, but just as importantly he perfectly fits Amorim’s football.
Although occasionally used as a striker, Mbeumo plays the vast majority of his matches as a right-winger, lurking wide or cutting infield to occupy the half-spaces - more or less in the positions that Amorim wants his right inside-forward to take up, in the narrow 3-4-2-1.
It’s this movement infield that helps Mbeumo get into the right areas to score, as well as to link so successfully with Yoane Wissa.
He might forge a similarly fruitful relationship with Cunha, not least because of the surprising similarities between Thomas Frank and Amorim.
Finding the clinical edge
Although we haven’t seen much of it yet, Amorim likes to create fast artificial transitions.
He aims to use possession to lure the opponent into a press, creating scenarios in which the forwards can break quickly and directly into space.
This is clearly his priority at Man Utd, judging by these two summer signings. Cunha is an outstanding dribbler between the lines, while Mbeumo is a superb ball-carrier down the right.
Mbeumo's ball carrying 24/25
| 24/25 | PL rank | |
| Carries | 1,077 | 2nd* |
|---|---|---|
| Progressive carries | 130 | 9th |
| Attempted dribbles | 111 | 18th |
| Successful dribbles | 52 | 12th |
*among forwards
Mbeumo is an urgent player; a direct, risk-taking runner who – like Cunha – should make Man Utd considerably more vertical.
He ranked second in 2024/25 for attacking-third touches (998) and second for progressive passes received (351), on both metrics behind only Salah. It’s only Salah again, plus Morgan Rogers, who scored higher for miscontrols (106), suggesting Mbeumo takes that risk in possession.
Mbeumo and Cunha together, one right and one left, will look to link with a No 9 through sheer force in the dribble.
The future at Man Utd is clearly fast transitions, direct football, and – Amorim hopes – a clinical edge in front of goal.