Looking back at Manchester United’s last season in the Premier League, it is clear that they had problems, especially up front.
In fact, no player finished the season with double figures in league goals, with only Alejandro Garnacho, Amad Diallo and Bruno Fernandes scoring six or more goals in the top flight.
A truly prolific presence is still missing this time around, but the 2025/26 season is very different, with seven games still left and Benjamin Sesco and Brian Mbeumo leading the way with nine goals ahead of Fernandes, Casemiro and Matheus Cunha.
Manchester United top scorer – 24/25 vs 25/26* | |
|---|---|
24/25 | 25/26 |
Fernandes – 8 | Sesco – 9 |
Amado – 8 | Mbeumo – 9 |
Grenache – 6 | Fernandes – 8 |
Hoylund – 4 | Cunha – 7 |
Rashford – 4 | Casemiro – 7 |
Zirkzee – 3 | Dorgu – 3 |
de lift – 2 | Mount – 3 |
Martinez – 2 | Zirkzee – 2 |
Amado – 2 | |
*Premier League only – 2 and above | |
To INEOS’ credit, three of the top five scorers at Old Trafford this season were signings from last year’s glorious summer, and they will need to repeat that success story once this season ends.
Manchester United enter race to sign Premier League sensation
Ruben Amorim may have endured an unforgettable 14-month stint in Manchester, but the Portuguese can be credited with overseeing a serious clean-up last summer, and the mass departure of United’s attackers this season hasn’t exactly set the world on fire.
Garnacho has only scored one goal in the Premier League for Chelsea, while Jadon Sancho is on loan at Aston Villa and has not scored any goals in the top flight.
Meanwhile, in Spain, Marcus Rashford and Anthony have only scored four and seven goals in La Liga respectively, despite Rasmus Højlund returning to Italy and scoring 10 goals in Serie A.
INEOS will not be losing any sleep over any of these departures amid reports that United are in the race to sign Villa defender Morgan Rodgers. Attention is now on further reinforcement.
According to reports from Caught Offside, the England international is set to leave the Midlands team this summer, with clubs including Arsenal and United said to be on high alert.
The 23-year-old is looking to take the next step in his career, but the Villains have no intention of letting him go lightly and claim his signature will cost as much as £100m, which would break Paul Pogba’s current record deal with the Red Devils.
Why Rodgers upgrades Cunha and Mbeumo
There’s no denying that this has been a great first season for Cunha and Mbeumo. The latter has scored at Anfield, the Emirates and Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, as well as on a number of occasions in January’s Manchester derby.
Desire to join: Manchester United aims to upgrade Cunha, “players like Amad and Mbeumo”
He’s in great shape this season.
As for the Brazilian, after a quiet start he exploded under manager Michael Carrick, scoring himself away for Arsenal and scoring further goals against Fulham and Villa in 2026.
As expected, the 26-year-olds have hit the ground running in a United shirt, with INEOS benefiting from their decision to bring in proven Premier League talent last summer.
In the case of Rodgers, the Old Trafford hierarchy could be in for an even bigger top-flight superstar, as the former Manchester City player has looked “unstoppable” at times in recent seasons, according to Jamie Carragher.
The Villa Park hero caught the eye when the two sides met in December, scoring twice in spectacular fashion with devastating effect down the left flank to seal a 2-1 win for the hosts.
Although his goals have fallen slightly since then, the Three Lions star still has 13 goals and assists in the Premier League this season, ahead of Mbeumo’s 12 goals and Cunha’s nine.
Rodgers has been more prominent in front of goal, having missed only three big chances, again ahead of both Mbemo (10) and Cunha (four).
In terms of his creativity, the former Middlesbrough man has already created 10 ‘big chances’ for his Villa team-mates, more than the total achieved by his United team-mates (8).
This is not far-fetched either, with Rodgers finishing the 2024/25 campaign with 18 goals and assists after creating 16 ‘big chances’ in his first full season in the Premier League.
At just 23 years old, the £100m man is a player with huge potential, while his ability to play centrally, offside or even as a false nine makes him a very valuable addition.
Midfield may be INEOS’ priority going into the summer, but with the likes of Declan Rice recently joining Arsenal, United cannot afford to overlook a new English sensation on the rise.
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Manchester United have their sights set on another English talent alongside Elliott Anderson.
