Kobbie Mainoo opens up on disastrous phase under Amorim | OneFootball

Michael Carrick’s arrival has not only benefited Manchester United, but also one of their homegrown heroes.

Kobbie Mainoo, who was a regular for the Red Devils en route to their FA Cup success under Erik ten Hag, and for England as they reached the Euro 2024 finals, inexplicably saw his role drastically reduced by Ruben Amorim.

The Portuguese felt the Englishman did not fit his system and opted to play Bruno Fernandes alongside Casemiro instead.

The Carrington graduate failed to start a single Premier League game under the then-Portuguese head coach, and came close to leaving the 20-time English league champions in two successive transfer windows.

Amorim almost led to Kobbie Mainoo leaving

INEOS blocked his request in the summer, before the caretaker head coach’s arrival in January following Amorim’s sacking, turned his fortunes around.

Kobbie Mainoo has started all but one game under Carrick, and his heroics against Liverpool ensured the club’s return to the Champions League.

Sky Sports caught up with the 21-year-old and asked him about his time under Amorim. The Stockport-born star admitted that he came close to quitting his boyhood club.

“When you’re not playing many games, or any games, you consider all things. But at the forefront of my mind was always to play for Manchester United and continue to play for this club that I’ve grown up at.”

How United stars helped Kobbie Mainoo overcome challenging period

He went on to explain how difficult that period was, and how his teammates helped him overcome that challenging phase.

“Yeah, when there’s new managers, they have their way that they want to play and if they think you don’t fit that, then you don’t fit that. All I can do is try and work and train to maybe see it in a different light.

“Going from playing nearly every game to not playing as often is always going to be a difficult adjustment. It was good for me in terms of learning [about] myself, the game, and patience. How to schedule my life and how I train and how I work and getting into routines.”

“It’s difficult when you don’t even come on as a sub of course. But I’d say my family and my friends helped me see the light at the end of the tunnel. They knew it would swing back my way at some point, so I just had to be patient.”

The midfield maestro has been duly rewarded with a new long-term deal by United, and he is expected to play a starring role for the three-time Champions League winners in the years to come and for the Three Lions at the upcoming World Cup.

Feature image Shaun Botterill via Getty Images

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