BBC Sport pundit Wayne Rooney used Kobbie Mainoo to highlight a major detail that he has spotted about Manchester United after the Arsenal result at the Emirates.
Kobbie Mainoo started his second consecutive Premier League match of the 2025-26 season after Ruben Amorim was sacked as Manchester United manager this month.
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The England international had fallen out of the United starting XI in the current campaign under Ruben Amorim, who had dropped Bruno Fernandes into a deeper role.
However, Michael Carrick scrapped the contentious tactical system deployed by former United manager Amorim and Mainoo has since been a key starter so far.
Mainoo made his first Premier League start of the campaign in the Manchester derby and the midfielder played 90 minutes in Man Utd’s 2-0 win over Manchester City.
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Kobbie Mainoo during the Premier League match between Arsenal and Manchester United at the Emirates Stadium in 2026 in London, England.
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Wayne Rooney’s reaction to Kobbie Mainoo and other Man Utd players speaks volumes about Michael Carrick
Kobbie Mainoo partnered alongside Casemiro at the weekend and the 20-year-old Stockport-born talent completed the full 90 minutes again at the Emirates this time.
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The Three Lions ace looked comfortable in the heart of the Red Devils midfield, and Mainoo picked up an assist for Matheus Cunha’s winner against Arsenal on Sunday.
Speaking after Manchester United’s 3-2 win over Arsenal, Wayne Rooney was asked about the transformation of Patrick Dorgu in the player’s left winger role on the pitch.
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However, United’s all-time scorer said that Patrick Dorgu was not the only player who stood out and praised both Mainoo and Casemiro for their performances.
“I think there’s a big difference in all the players,” Rooney explained on BBC Sport’s The Wayne Rooney Show.
“So, you know, I think I’m sure if he [Dorgu] played at left-back, he would have looked a lot better under this regime now.
“So I think there’s a big difference. I thought Casemiro and Mainoo were brilliant in the middle of the pitch.
“Again, the two centre-backs were brilliant. Again, [the] ‘keeper was, was really good.
“So, again, I think you praise all the players for the performance.”
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Wayne Rooney on what the likes of Kobbie Mainoo and Co are now doing for Michael Carrick’s Man Utd side
United stunned Arsenal at the Emirates on Sunday evening and Michael Carrick’s men chalked up another three Premier League points after the Man City result.
United legend Rooney insisted that the first-team Red Devils squad looks more like a collective under former club teammate Carrick compared with Ruben Amorim.
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“But what they’re doing, they’re showing a compactness, a togetherness and a grit, a real grit to dig into games and they want to run,” he continued.
“They want to work together. They want to because when you do that, you get your rewards and that’s what they’ve done in the last two games.
“They’ve worked really hard being together and got the rewards and six points.”
United are now fourth in the Premier League table and the Red Devils are one point clear of fifth-place Chelsea after their wins over City and Arsenal under Carrick.
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