Kobbie Mainoo faces ‘cruel’ reality at Man Utd as ex-star urges transfer rethink amid Amorim struggles
Regarding Kobbie Mainoo’s predicament, Dimitar Berbatov stated that the English midfielder is in a “cruel situation” under Ruben Amorim’s supervision.
The former Manchester United forward praised the 20-year-old’s skills and asked if he should look to leave Old Trafford in order to further his development.
This season, Mainoo has only started one game across all competitions. In an interview with Daily Mail Sport, Berbatov made the remarks.
During his four years at Old Trafford, the Bulgarian striker was a fan favourite thanks to his seductive touch and easygoing attitude, which showed a degree of confidence that verged on conceit.
He highly admires Mainoo’s brilliance and finds many of those qualities in her. The former star of Bayer Leverkusen, Fulham, and Tottenham also showed compassion for a youngster who, only 15 months ago, appeared to have the world at his feet.
Trending
Over the course of the 2023–24 season, Mainoo moved from being a young upstart to a regular at Manchester United and ultimately a crucial component of Gareth Southgate’s England team that advanced to the European Championship finals.
The first significant obstacle in Amorim’s rise has been his seeming lack of confidence in his ability to start games, but the 20-year-old has found it nearly impossible to overcome.
“It’s a very tough situation, especially for a young player,” stated Berbatov. The fact that Kobbie Mainoo was playing, made it to the England national squad, and continued to rise tells you how cruel football can be at times. Suddenly, he is not being chosen.
“Does he remain upbeat, patient, and wait for his opportunity once more? Or does he need to relocate to a new location where he can play frequently in order to regain his confidence before returning to United to begin playing more frequently?
“Even at his age, he has the talent, decision-making, composure, and arrogance that you need when you have the ball at your feet, so I would want to watch him play.
That’s good. However, the manager does not now see anything that he can utilise from the first minute of play.”
Mainoo’s playing time has been drastically reduced due to his decline in favour under Amorim.
The highly regarded young player made 21 straight starts in Erik ten Hag’s midfield during his breakthrough season in 2023–2024.
He also scored the game-winning goal in the Red Devils’ unexpected upset of Manchester City in the FA Cup final.
The midfielder’s momentum was partly interrupted by a calf injury in February, but he still started 19 league games last season, several of which were under Amorim after Ten Hag’s departure.
Mainoo has only started one game this season: United’s humiliating League Cup loss to League Two underdogs Grimsby Town on penalties.
Despite making seven appearances off the bench, he has only played 138 minutes in the league.
He did not go to London as part of Amorim’s matchday squad to play Tottenham because of a knock, and he was an unused substitute in United’s 2-2 draw away to Forest last weekend.
Amorim prevented the 20-year-old from leaving on loan during the summer transfer window.
According to the Portuguese, Mainoo is vying with club captain Bruno Fernandes for a position, which makes it appear more and more improbable that he would get regular playing time in the manager’s strict 3-4-3 formation.
According to recent sources, West Ham is prepared to test Amorim’s willpower and will propose a loan move during the January transfer window.
The player’s representation are also anticipated to ask for a short-term transfer away from Old Trafford.
The academy graduate’s desire to stay with his childhood team is shown by the drive for a loan move, but how long will he stick with United if he can’t keep improving as a player?
All sides would seem to benefit most from a loan move, but the longer this goes on, the more probable it is that Mainoo’s long-term future will be outside of Manchester.
