Ruben Amorim Is Right, Kobbie Mainoo Is The Future Of Manchester United | OneFootball

Kobbie Mainoo is one of the most talented midfielders to ever walk through the iconic doors at Manchester United’s training facility at Carrington, and that includes some of the greats. Paul Scholes has previously said he wasn’t as talented as the Stockport-born midfielder, and when you watched Kobbie during his first two campaigns at the club, it’s hard to argue otherwise.

It was the composure that made Mainoo stand out from those around him in a turbulent United team, and his age mates at different clubs. Mainoo exuded calmness in an area of the pitch that downright requires it, but despite that being a well-known fact, it’s not always an area where the players who play there possess that skillset. Manchester United fans will know that more than anyone.

Mainoo, Generational quality

Manchester United’s English midfielder #37 Kobbie Mainoo celebrates after scoring his team second goal during the English FA Cup final football match between Manchester City and Manchester United at Wembley stadium, in London, on May 25, 2024. (Photo by JUSTIN TALLIS / AFP) / NOT FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING USE / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE (Photo by JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP via Getty Images)

Mainoo can do something many of the United midfielders over the last decade couldn’t do successfully, and that’s receive the ball under pressure in the first phase of build-up and resist the press that comes with the intensity of the Premier League. Kobbie thrives in tight spaces, but also exerts a certain layer of control that United do not have in the team without him, even with Casemiro in the side adjacent to the captain, Bruno Fernandes.

The issue with the system Amorim plays, although he’s tweaked it in recent weeks, is that Kobbie is fighting with Bruno for a place. Many have discussed whether United need to sign another midfielder to play alongside Bruno in that midfield two, but the real discussion should be who Manchester United signs to play alongside Kobbie Mainoo?

That has to be the desire internally. This is a gem. A diamond in the rough, who must be treasured and treated as such. Amorim has his reasons for not playing Mainoo at the moment, and in truth, that has to be respected. He is the manager. What he says goes, whether you agree with it or not; this is the truth. If Amorim feels the team perform currently with the setup and makeup of the players at his disposal without Kobbie Mainoo, then that’s understandable. It’s a difficult pill to swallow, but it’s understandable.

Trying to belittle Amorim in press conferences is not the way to deal with this situation. But if a midfielder is not being prepped and targeted to play alongside Kobbie going forward, or if Amorim’s tweak in the system does not involve a complete switch to a midfield 3, which is the system Kobbie would thrive in most, then serious questions have to be asked.

Build around our boy

LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND – JANUARY 05: Curtis Jones of Liverpool and Kobbie Mainoo of Manchester United compete for the ball during the Premier League match between Liverpool FC and Manchester United FC at Anfield on January 05, 2025 in Liverpool, England. (Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images)

Carlos Baleba arguably represents that type of target United need to aim for. A ground-covering midfielder, who could perhaps mask some of the issues Kobbie has out of possession, although in truth, those seem to be drastically over-analysed. The simplicity of the discussion is this: in the long run, as time goes by, Ruben Amorim and Manchester United have got to work out a plan to get Kobbie Mainoo regularly starting for the club. And if I’m being honest, I genuinely believe that is Amorim’s plan. I just don’t know when that plan will come to fruition.

This is why I believe the loan may be a good option. Amorim may not feel like United is in a situation where Kobbie can be the midfielder he wants him to be right now. Again, that is a discussion for another day; people will disagree, and others will agree. But this is the manager’s opinion. There is clearly a method to his madness, and we have to try to see that method for what it is rather than disagreeing with it. Regardless of that method, there has to be a world down the line where Kobbie is regarded as the number one player for that midfield under the manager.

It’s a saying that holds true. If Kobbie were at another club, United would target him for £100m. If Kobbie were at Brighton, United would be scouting him, trying to make him a part of their project. It’s undeniable. United let Paul Pogba go and then paid £100m for him a few years later. They cannot repeat that mistake. It would be catastrophic, and Kobbie has all the talent required to go on and be that Paul Pogba-esque talent.

In summation, this is a world-level talent produced in our own back garden. This is a unicorn profile produced amongst English football clubs, who would not look out of place being a La Masia graduate. It’s a footballer that could, and if we are not careful, would go on to play for a Barcelona or a Real Madrid in the future. Mainoo deserves to start for Manchester United. Maybe not right now. Maybe the manager’s words right now hold some truth. But in the long run, Kobbie Mainoo has to become a Manchester United pillar for success.

Kobbie Mainoo has to play over 300 games as a starter in Manchester United’s midfield. Give the 20-year-old the keys to Old Trafford and let him turn it back into the Theatre of Dreams we all know and love.