Kobbie Mainoo remains unsettled at Manchester United following a tough start to the 2025/26 campaign. The English midfielder rose through the ranks at the Theatre of Dreams and caught the imagination of fans during the reign of former manager Erik ten Hag.
Under the Dutchman, Mainoo developed into one of the finest young talents in the world, breaking into the England team as well.
He started and scored in the FA Cup final win over Manchester City in 2024. The 20 year old was also in the starting XI for the Euro 2024 final, which the Three Lions lost to Spain.
Mainoo was expected to be the focal point of United’s squad rebuild, but his situation at Old Trafford took an unexpected turn following Ruben Amorim’s arrival last November.
Struggling for chances this season
Mainoo played was initially a first team regular under the Portuguese head coach last season, but has lost prominence following a summer of reshuffling in attack. The arrival of Matheus Cunha has seen Bruno Fernandes deployed in a deeper role this season, cutting into the young Englishman’s game time.
Mainoo played 37 times last campaign, scoring two goals and setting up one more, clocking over 2000 minutes of action for the senior side.
This season, the youngster has registered just 203 minutes of first team football across six games. His only start came in the disastrous EFL Cup defeat to Grimsby, while the player has come off the bench on five occasions in the Premier League.
With United skipper Bruno Fernandes almost untouchable in Amorim’s starting XI, Mainoo’s situation looks unlikely to change any time soon.
Recent reports have suggested that the player wants to leave in January to bolster his chances of featuring for England at next year’s FIFA World Cup. It now appears that Napoli are ready to hand him a lifeline.
Conte eager to sign Mainoo
According to a report from Calciomercato, Antonio Conte has asked Napoli to sign Mainoo in January to replace Frank Anguissa. The Cameroonian is likely to be involved in the Africa Cup of Nations with his national team in December and January, and the Italian manager wants the Englishman to take his place.
Conte believes that the youngster can fit in quite well into his system. Napoli have already found success with former United midfielder Scott McTominay. Rasmus Hojlund has also hit the ground running following this summer’s loan spell to the Serie A side.
The Partenopei are now planning to repeat the trick with Mainoo. The youngster will be aware of his former teammates’ change in fortunes in Italy, and could be open to a move himself.
However, the Red Devils may not be too keen to let him go in the middle of the season, as finding a suitable replacement in January will neither be easy nor cheap. Meanwhile, his potential departure could also leave the squad seriously short-handed in dealing with injuries in midfield.
Only a colossal offer would convince the Premier League giants to let go of their prized asset. The Serie A giants already have a £38m obligation to sign Hojlund next summer, and may not have the finances to script another big deal for Mainoo.
Featured image George Wood via Getty Images
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Deepungsu Pandit
Deepungsu has been a Manchester United fan since 2000. In his playing days, he was an attacking midfielder with a proclivity for the back heel. Right now, however, he prefers to operate as a regista. Deepungsu has been writing about the Red Devils, Football, and other things since 2009. He has worked for over seven years with Sportskeeda, writing football reviews, opinions and news articles. Deepungsu also maintains a blog, The Thinking Me, where he writes about life and things that interest him. His favourite Manchester United player is Paul Scholes.
