Manchester United recruited a new-look front three for Ruben Amorim over the summer. With Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho both leaving the club, the Red Devils needed depth in forward areas.
To add that strength up top, Sir Jim Ratcliffe spent more than £200m constructing the new forward line. Matheus Cunha joined for £62.5m from Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Their new number nine was Benjamin Sesko. He signed late in the window from RB Leipzig, costing United £74m. He scored in back-to-back games heading into the recent international break.
Bryan Mbeumo was the other signing from Brentford, costing £71m including add-ons. It has been a strong start to the campaign for the Cameroonian star, too.
How Mbeumo’s start compares to other Big 6 wingers
Naturally, there was going to be a lot of pressure on United’s new number 19. He had an exceptional season for Bournemouth last season, with 28 goals and assists in 38 Premier League matches.
However, the 26-year-old has started the season well. He’s already scored twice for United and has an assist in eight games.
His first Premier League strike came against Burnley, and he set up Mason Mount against Sunderland.
But, how do those stats stack up to some of the other right-sided attackers in the Big 6? Well, Mohamed Salah’s start to the season has been somewhat underwhelming, although he has two goals and two assists in the Premier League so far. Those are the same numbers Phil Foden has across all competitions.
Arsenal’s main right-sided option, Bukayo Saka, has scored three goals in all competitions, and Tottenham Hotspur’s Mohammed Kudus has set up five goals. As for Chelsea, Estevao has been their chief destroyer on the right, with a goal and assist, including that late winner against Liverpool.
Overall, Mbeumo’s numbers stack up well to some of his rivals. What is scary for their opponents is that United have a homegrown version of the Cameroon star brewing at Carrington.
United’s homegrown Mbeumo
Although Mbeumo is only 26 years of age and not even in his peak years, it is always nice for United fans to know that they have an extremely talented right-sided attacker in their academy.
The Cameroonian international will be perfect for him to learn from.
Indeed, Red Devils fans can surely get excited about 17-year-old winger Bendito Mantato. The England under-18 international has shone for their academy over the past couple of years, so much so that Amorim invited him to join first-team training this week.
The forward is a versatile player who can play on both flanks and even at left-back. However, when operating as a right-winger under Darren Fletcher in the under-18s squad, he’s scored and assisted in just two games.
Indeed, those numbers are impressive, but his overall stats for the under-18s at Carrington show he’s posed a threat to opposition defenders for a few seasons. He’s scored 14 goals and assisted three times in just 23 games in the Under-18s Premier League.
2022/23
4
0
2023/24
7
6 goals & 2 assists
2024/25
11
7 goals
2025/26
1
1 goal & 1 assist
The 17-year-old is a player who possesses a good instinct in the penalty box, a great threat for a winger to have. This strike against Arsenal in the FA Youth Cup last season demonstrates just that.
It is also similar to Mbeumo’s goal against Burnley this season, highlighting the similarities between the pair.
Mantato is certainly an exciting prospect, with Academy Scoop, a Red Devils academy page over on X, calling him “one of the biggest talents at the club.” That is certainly high praise, given the quality in the academy ranks at Carrington.
It will be fascinating to see how Mantato’s development goes and how similar to Mbeumo he is when he does eventually break into first-team football.