Bryan Mbeumo has been at AFCON representing Cameroon recently, where his performances have been going under the radar.
Manchester United’s team had eight absentees over the Christmas period, for a variety of reasons, one of whom is Bryan Mbeumo, as he represents his country at the African Cup of Nations.
Mbeumo is one of three players from Old Trafford at the competition, with Amad and Noussair Mazraoui shining for their nations, resulting in being named in the best team of the tournament thus far.
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Mbeumo and Cameroon are into the round of 16, where a clash with South Africa awaits, and the 26-year-old will want to continue his impressive form and push his country toward the quarter finals, where it will likely be Morocco and Mazraoui.
Despite not being rated among the very top performers, Mbeumo has quietly been excellent, leading the competition in one key area.
Bryan Mbeumo has been the best creator at AFCON
While not setting the world alight for Cameroon, Mbeumo has been impressive, getting an assist in the opener for his nation.
Mbeumo then took on Amad’s Ivory Coast, playing out a draw as his club teammate got a goal.
However, Mbeumo’s performances have been better than his one assist suggests.
Mbeumo leads the competition for big chances created, with four in his three games.
How many goals do you think Bryan Mbeumo will finish with this season? ⚽
Additionally, no player has more key passes than Mbeumo’s eight so far, joint with Algeria’s Ibrahim Maza and Nigeria’s Alex Iwobi, while Amad is on seven.
Mbeumo will, however, want more, as he will know that his side could struggle to get past Morocco if he’s not at the top of his game.
Manchester United sorely lacking creativity
While Mbeumo averages around 2.6 key passes per game at AFCON, United’s scoring average has gone down to one per game, with creativity severely missing.
Bruno Fernandes’ injury has affected United, but so has Mbeumo and Amad, with the appalling 0.84 expected goals created against Wolves.
This issue is partly due to personnel available right now, but this just proves that Ineos cannot ignore the lack of depth in attack this month, with the left side still weak even when everyone is fit.
United have been linked with Yan Diomande after missing out on signing Antoine Semenyo, and a move in January to sign this Ivorian superstar in the making might be the difference between qualifying for the Conference League and the Champions League.
Things will get better, but if Ineos want to give Amorim the tools to play 4-3-3, then Diomande in January for a potential £52m would make a lot of sense.
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