Manchester United's interim head coach Michael Carrick strengthened his chance of landing the job on a permanent basis with a 1-0 win over Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in the Premier League on Saturday night.
One of the big positives of the former Middlesborough manager's reign has been the reintroduction of Kobbie Mainoo after he fell out of favour under previous boss Ruben Amorim.
The England international has started all 12 of his 12 appearances for the club in all competitions since the Red Devils parted ways with Amorim in January.
Kobbie-Mainoo-Manchester-United
Manchester United won eight and only lost two of those 12 matches with Mainoo in the starting line-up, which shows how important he has been to the turnaround under Carrick.
The interim boss deserves credit for putting the academy graduate back into the team in the middle of the park, because of the impact that he had on the results.
Why Man United are better with Kobbie Mainoo starting
Whilst he was not directly involved in Matheus Cunha's winning goal at Stamford Bridge, Mainoo has made United better as a starter in the Premier League this season.
The Red Devils have won eight of the 11 matches that the central midfield maestro has started in the league, whilst only winning eight of the 22 games that he did not start.
25/26 Premier League Mainoo starting Mainoo not starting
Games 11 22
Wins 8 8
Draws 2 8
Losses 1 6
Points per game 2.36 1.45
The stark contrast in results with and without him starting may be because United do not have another central midfield option like him, as Casemiro and Manuel Ugarte are both destroyers rather than midfield metronomes.
Mainoo is constantly available as an outlet to retain possession, using his passing and dribbling qualities to evade the opposition's press, and his presence limits the number of turnovers in the game.
mainoo-man-utd
The England international is proof that young players deserve opportunities and a run of games to prove their worth on the pitch, as he did not get enough of that under Amorim.
The Man United star who is becoming the new Kobbie Mainoo
Now, Mainoo is not the only academy graduate who is shining on the pitch for Carrick, as one of his teammates was a monster against Chelsea.
kobbie-mainoo-man-united-carrick
Signed from Arsenal's academy, Ayden Heaven put in an incredibly impressive performance at Stamford Bridge on Saturday night as the only recognised centre-back in the squad.
The English youngster is looking to follow in Mainoo's footsteps by transitioning from the academy to being a reliable, regular, first-team starter, and his display against Chelsea shows that he has the potential to do so.
|Man Utd player ratings vs Chelsea|
|Player|Rating|
|---|
|Senne Lammens|7|
|Diogo Dalot|7.5|
|Noussair Mazraoui|7|
|Ayden Heaven|8|
|Luke Shaw|7|
|Kobbie Mainoo|7|
|Casemiro|7.5|
|Bryan Mbeumo|6|
|Bruno Fernandes|8|
|Matheus Cunha|8|
|Benjamin Sesko|5|
Heaven delivered a performance worthy of an 8/10 player rating against the Blues, as he was dominant defensively and reliable with the ball at his feet.
The left-footed defender won five of his seven duels and blocked a game-high four shots, whilst also making three clearances, and he was not dribbled past a single time.
ayden-heaven-man-utd
Chelsea had United on the ropes at times, as you would expect given that they were the home team, and Heaven's sublime last-ditch defending prevented Senne Lammens from being overworked during those periods.
The 19-year-old star, who also completed 89% of his attempted passes, was almost faultless defensively and deserves huge credit for the clean sheet that United earned in London.
ayden-heaven-man-united
It was only his 11th Premier League start at senior level for United since the start of the 2024/25 campaign, but he showed maturity beyond his years as the only centre-back in the team in a tough away game against Chelsea.
That is the sign of a future leader for United, given his performance at that ground at such a young age in difficult circumstances, and he can use Mainoo's progress as evidence that he will get chances under Carrick if he continues to perform.
Heaven was a monster against the Blues and deserves to keep his place in the starting XI for the rest of this season, should he continue to deliver similar levels of performances.
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