‘You find a way to make Mainoo fit’published at 19:22 British Summer Time
Grimsby Town v Man Utd (20:00 BST)
Image source, Getty ImagesAlex Turk, Fan writer
Kobbie Mainoo leaving Manchester United is just the latest potential summer twist that no one could have fathomed a year ago. And with good reason.
Ruben Amorim has received incredible backing by the fanbase for a head coach with a 24% win rate in the Premier League. But I can guarantee that the decision to offload an academy graduate of Mainoo’s talent and potential would not go down well, especially if results don’t improve.
This is a 20-year-midfielder who started for England in a major final around one year after making his senior debut.
Mainoo was talked about as a £100m-plus footballer. And that talk was justified, given his wealth of traits and early experience. He has scored crucial goals against Wolves, Liverpool and Lyon, and the winner in an FA Cup final against Manchester City, no less.
The task of thwarting United captain Bruno Fernandes seems like an impossible and unreasonable one. Fernandes will always be in the team, even if his disaster at Fulham extends into a poor run of form. So when will Mainoo’s opportunity arrive?
You can’t possibly tell me that Casemiro or Manuel Ugarte deserve prominent roles while Mainoo watches from the bench. United couldn’t get any more hopeless in midfield.
When you possess a player of his quality, you find a way to make him fit.
