The October international break is underway, so TBR Football has looked at the worst Premier League XI from the 2023/24 season so far with four Manchester United duds.
It has been a disastrous start to the campaign at Old Trafford as Erik ten Hag looks to get the Red Devils back up the table. Poor performances throughout the pitch have left Manchester United down in 10th place. Yet Chelsea are also only in 11th place, despite spending £434m.
No Premier League side spent more than Mauricio Pochettino for Chelsea this summer with Manchester City’s £216m outlay the second-most. But the Argentine has failed to find a way to get the Blues to produce. Especially their £100m, rising to £115m, arrival Moises Caicedo.
Getting Caicedo to justify his mammoth fee when the Premier League term resumes will be among Pochettino’s priorities. Ten Hag also has his work cut out to get a tune from his team. Four Manchester United duds made our worst Premier League XI of the 23/24 season so far.
GK: Andre Onana (Manchester United)
Hope was high at Old Trafford when Andre Onana joined Manchester United in a £47m deal with Inter Milan. But since the goalkeeper’s transfer in July, the 27-year-old has produced an array of error-strewn displays. His confidence has also seemed to be shot to pieces at times.
Ten Hag longed to reunite with Onana to take advantage of his former AFC Ajax player’s ball-playing skills. But Onana has struggled to get even the basics right since replacing David de Gea. Simple shots have squirmed under the Cameroonian who keeps costing his side points.
RB: Max Aarons (AFC Bournemouth)
AFC Bournemouth beat Leeds United to sign Max Aarons from Norwich City this August for £9m, rising to £12m. Yet the Cherries’ delight in landing the 23-year-old has gone sour. The right-back is yet to make strides on the south coast having given little attacking threat so far.
CB: Anel Ahmedhodzic (Sheffield United)
Anel Ahmedhodzic has drawn criticism for his performances with Sheffield United. Even the defender admitted ‘it was not my day’ after the Blades lost 8-0 at Newcastle United. He was unable to prevent Sean Longstaff and Dan Burn from scoring as his woeful form continued.
Premier League football has not been kind to Ahmedhodzic since helping Sheffield United to secure promotion last season. His sheer void of form has helped the Blades to pen the worst defensive record so far. Paul Heckingbottom’s team have conceded a division-high 22 times.
CB: Pau Torres (Aston Villa)
A £33m transfer for Pau Torres signalled Aston Villa’s intent to build on Unai Emery securing them European football. The 26-year-old was one of La Liga’s premier defenders and helped Villarreal lift the Europa League in 2020/21. But the Villans are yet to see that sort of player.
Torres has made Aston Villa’s XI for seven of their eight Premier League meetings so far this season. Yet his form has blown hot and cold every time the wind has changed direction. He scored against Wolves, for example, but Pedro Neto dragged Torres out wide and spun him.
LB: Luke Thomas (Sheffield United)
Sheffield United took advantage of Leicester City’s relegation to sign Luke Thomas on loan in the 2023/24 Premier League season. The Foxes product had played in 56 top-flight fixtures at the King Power Stadium. He even helped the East Midlands outfit win the FA Cup in 2021.
But the Blades are yet to see Thomas perform at his best across five Premier League outings at Bramall Lane. The 22-year-old has appeared afraid to attack the ball at times and allowed attackers chances to threaten Heckingbottom’s team when not giving the ball away cheaply.
CDM: Casemiro (Manchester United)
Manchester United finished third in the Premier League last season with Casemiro often an essential figure in Ten Hag’s XI. The 31-year-old was a difference-maker following his £60m, rising to £70m, departure from Real Madrid. But he has been a shadow of himself this term.
Ten Hag even hooked Casemiro at half-time against Brentford as Manchester United faced a home defeat before the international break. The Brazilian has started in all eight of the Red Devils’ fixtures this term. But his defensive output and impact on the ball have gone missing.
CM: Mason Mount (Manchester United)
Chelsea named Mason Mount as their Player of the Season in 2020/21 and 2021/22. Yet the Blues sold the 24-year-old to Manchester United this July for £55m, rising to £60m, to try to balance the books. But it is Chelsea who have got the better end of the deal so far this term.
Mount has not come close to living up to his price tag at Old Trafford. A thigh injury has held him back to just four Premier League appearances under Ten Hag. But even when fit, Mount has struggled to make a tangible impact on the Red Devils’ matches with or without the ball.
CM: Moises Caicedo (Chelsea)
Caicedo will become the British record transfer should Chelsea have to pay Brighton & Hove Albion every potential add-on. But the 21-year-old has not looked anywhere near a £100m player in west London. His career in blue also got off to a horrific start at West Ham United.
Jamie Carragher branded Caicedo’s debut a ‘nightmare’ after losing a host of challenges and also conceding a penalty. Pochettino has struggled to coax much more from the Ecuadorian, either. Even when Caicedo shows promise, his eagerness has resulted in some cheap fouls.
RW: Antony (Manchester United)
Manchester United adhered to Ten Hag’s pleas to sign Antony for £86m in September 2022. Yet the 23-year-old has still only offered four goals and two assists from 30 Premier League appearances. He is also yet to score or lay on a single assist from five appearances this term.
Antony has regularly shown a lack of an end product when Manchester United have worked the ex-Ajax forward the ball. The Red Devils only scoring nine goals through eight games can partly be directed at Antony’s form. Diogo Dalot has created more chances (9) than him (8).
ST: Raul Jimenez (Fulham)
Fulham paid Wolves £5.5m to sign Raul Jimenez in July ahead of selling Aleksandar Mitrovic to Al Hilal for £46m. Filling the Serbian’s void at Craven Cottage was always due to be a hard act to follow. But Marco Silva will lament just how hard it has proven for the Mexican so far.
The 32-year-old has made seven of Fulham’s eight Premier League XIs so far this term. But Jimenez has not scored a single goal or laid on an assist, leading Silva to axe him at home to Sheffield United. Silva saw enough after a stream of poor runs and no confidence in the box.
LW: Mykhailo Mudryk (Chelsea)
Chelsea spent £88.5m to sign Mykhailo Mudryk from Shakhtar Donetsk this January yet had to wait until October for his first goal. The 22-year-old eventually opened his account against Fulham after 21 Premier League games. He has made seven of those appearances this term.
But while Mudryk finally has a Premier League goal to his name, the Ukraine winger is yet to offer an assist this season. He has continually failed to shine in the final third as his decision-making lets Mudryk down. Chances have been there for Mudryk to show much, much more.