Kobbie Mainoo has Michael Carrick to thank for putting him on the World Cup plane, and the way he sent him away is a masterclass in man-management.
It was a season of two halves for Kobbie Mainoo at Man Utd, with Ruben Amorim ruining it in the first, and Michael Carrick saving it in the second.
Mainoo deserves immense credit as well for not letting that first half affect his performances in the second.
As a result, he’s with the England team right now for the World Cup, and Carrick sent him away with a heartfelt message.
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Kobbie Mainoo reveals Michael Carrick message
Carrick’s man-management has been lauded plenty of times by multiple Man Utd players over the course of the season.
Mainoo will hold a special place in his heart for him because he quite literally saved his United career, as they were willing to sell him for £40m to back Ruben Amorim.
Carrick came in, starting him in his very first game, and from then on, neither the manager nor the player looked back.
They drove each other’s success, and the result is a World Cup berth for Mainoo, something Carrick is immensely proud of.
Speaking to ITV Sports, Mainoo said Carrick told him to just be himself and take that confidence to the tournament.
He said: “It was more just telling me to be myself, play my football and to be confident. I want to be myself, I want to be confident in the way I play football.”
Carrick has handled Mainoo perfectly
A key part of being a good manager is to empower good players to play at their best, because sometimes, the tactics take care of themselves.
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Even geniuses like Pep Guardiola have repeatedly attributed their success to having good players most of the time.
Carrick realised he has a potential generational talent in Mainoo, and made concerted efforts to make him feel trusted and empowered.
The result was a player desperate to do well, who always had the quality, which is a combo successful teams are made on.
It’s a man-management masterclass from Carrick, and everyone has benefited from it.
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