Kobbie Mainoo has struggled for minutes this season at Manchester United, with Ruben Amorim placing him in direct competition with Bruno Fernandes.
Despite most Manchester United fans wanting to see Kobbie Mainoo on the pitch, as he impresses when he plays, Ruben Amorim refuses to start the 20-year-old.
This led to a boiling point in the summer transfer window, when Mainoo requested to leave United on loan, only for Amorim and the club to reject this, insisting he was needed.
Since then, Mainoo’s game time hasn’t improved, and his frustrations will surely be growing as a result. Not letting it show, Mainoo has been working hard in training, looking to earn more game time.
Due to his lack of minutes, Mainoo is at risk of missing the World Cup with England, having not been called up since September 2024.
Kobbie Mainoo handed World Cup belief, but there is one catch
Mainoo’s England career has been put on hold recently, with injuries and form last season now followed by a lack of game time so far in the 2025/26 campaign.
However, Mainoo remains fresh in the memory of the English FA, Nathan Salt has explained to Stretford Paddock in an interview.
“I spoke to someone during the summer, quite a senior figure at the FA, and they were talking then that they thought Mainoo would be a brilliant piece of the puzzle for England’s World Cup squad.
“That doesn’t seem likely now, but at that point, they said there are games where you will need someone like Kobbie Mainoo.”
Mainoo should still have his World Cup dream intact, with his quality clearly valued by the decision makers; however, to earn the spot, he needs to play football.
This month, Mainoo has been offered a future England U21 call-up by Lee Carsley, which could be his way back into the fold.
Ruben Amorim owes Kobbie Mainoo a chance at Manchester United
Amorim’s reluctance to play Mainoo makes little sense, considering how bad the midfield has been this season at United.
Additionally, Amorim told Mainoo he needed him when he refused to let the young midfielder leave on loan in the summer.
Despite the lack of minutes, Amorim has always spoken highly of Mainoo, declaring that the academy graduate has a future under him, although admitting he isn’t the finished product.
Amorim needs to give Mainoo more minutes to develop him into the player that he needs to be.
Hopefully, once United starts knitting together some results, minutes for Mainoo come a lot easier.
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