Kobbie Mainoo has been linked with a move away from Man Utd in January.placeholder image
Kobbie Mainoo has been linked with a move away from Man Utd in January. | Manchester United via Getty Imag
A European giant is keeping tabs on a highly-rated Man Utd youngster
Manchester United wonderkid Kobbie Mainoo remains unsettled at Old Trafford and is expected to push for a move away from his boyhood club this January.
Mainoo burst onto the scene during the final months of the 2023/24 and was the shining light in a difficult season as United scraped into the Europa League by beating Manchester City in the FA Cup final. The 20-year-old scored in that match at Wembley Stadium and looked set to be the latest in a long-line of great stars to have come through the academy, but has since experienced a dip in form which has seen him struggle to get regular first team minutes under Ruben Amorim.
Mainoo struggled for regular action towards the end of last season and reportedly expressed a desire to leave United on loan during the closing days of the summer window. United, however, who have a long history of always having an academy player in their matchday squad dating back to 1937, rejected this request and insisted that Mainoo was needed and that he should fight for his place.
Kobbie Mainoo could push for Man Utd exit in January
According to TEAMtalk, Kobbie Mainoo is ‘looking elsewhere’ to see where he can get regular first team football in the build-up to the World Cup in 2026.
The Stockport-born midfielder has won 10 caps for England which all came in 2024 but is yet to even feature in a matchday squad under Thomas Tuchel after falling behind names such as Jordan Henderson, Elliott Anderson, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Curtis Jones as well as players such as Adam Wharton that didn’t even get included in the most recent squad.
Mainoo was linked with the likes of Everton and Newcastle United over the summer, but the likelihood is that United won’t want to sell to a Premier League rival if they can avoid it.TEAMtalk at this moment, understand that the most concrete interest is coming from defending Italian champions Napoli.
Why a move to Napoli could appeal to Kobbie Mainoo
Kobbie Mainoo has only started one match this season: a 1-1 draw with Grimsby Town which his team ultimately lost on penalties. That came in the League Cup and other than that he's been limited solely to appearances from the subs bench in the Premier League. United are not competing in Europe which means Mainoo’s only route into the first team is Premier League minutes or the FA Cup if he’s still at the club when United start that competition in January.
It’s not an ideal situation for a player with World Cup aspirations to be in. Whereas at Napoli, he’d likely get regular minutes under a serial-winner in Antonio Conte, who has already worked wonders on the career of Mainoo’s former teammate Scott McTominay.
Scottish international McTominay finished 18th in this year’s Ballon d’Or rankings and is widely regarded as one of the best players in Italy despite often being misprofiled as solely a defensive midfielder at United. Meanwhile, Rasmus Hoijlund, a player that struggled to find the net at Old Trafford, has started well in Italy with three goals in five matches, including a brace against Amorim’s former club Sporting CP.
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