Manchester United’s disappointing 1-1 draw against Fulham at the weekend was mainly down to Ruben Amorim and his ludicrous second-half substitution calls.
Bringing on Manuel Ugarte despite his dismal cameo against Arsenal the week before, replacing Amad with Diogo Dalot, whose mistake eventually led to the Cottagers’ equaliser, were decisions difficult to comprehend.
Even more so was the fact that he chose to bring on two centre-halves instead of Kobbie Mainoo and Joshua Zirkzee, both of whom were sitting on the bench.
Naturally, the Englishman is unhappy with his lack of minutes, but the Portuguese tactician has claimed that his absence is due to tactical reasons.
Mainoo unhappy with lack of minutes
The Carrington wonderkid is not seen as a defensive midfielder, but as backup for Bruno Fernandes, hence the lack of action in both games thus far.
This rationale has not stopped the rumour mill from claiming that the 20-year-old is ready to leave his boyhood club, with the Red Devils even eyeing a replacement should this outcome come to pass.
However, Fabrizio Romano has tried to assuage the fears of the fanbase, claiming that no concrete offers have been tabled and there are currently no talks for the England international to leave.
It is well known that Kobbie Mainoo is yet to agree a new deal, and lots of clubs are circling, which is why INEOS will be sitting down with him in the coming days to sort out his future.
United hope to sit and sort out things with Mainoo
“Kobbie Mainoo is not happy to sit on the bench and play zero minutes. But I can guarantee that there are no negotiations, no bids, and no active talks for him to leave Man Utd.
“The player is disappointed. It’s not an easy situation to handle. Manchester United still hope to control the situation. They hope to speak to Mainoo, to explain to him the situation around him.
“Let’s wait for the next steps, but for now, the situation is quite calm around Mainoo.”
Hopefully, a sensible way forward can be mapped out. It would be extremely unfortunate if a homegrown star like him is let go like this.
The 20-year-old is likely to receive his first start of the season against Grimsby Town in the EFL Cup second round on Wednesday.
Feature image Shaun Botterill via Getty Images
Follow us on Bluesky: @peoplesperson.bsky.social
Ayantan Chowdhury
Ayantan has worked for 10 years in the Indian sports media industry, writing for the biggest newspapers and websites but his heart was always set on writing about his favourite club. Currently an editor at The Peoples Person. You can follow him on X: @ayantanc_25
