Kobbie Mainoo’s camp are insisting that the England midfielder wants to commit his long-term future to Manchester United, TBR Football can reveal.
After excelling for England at last summer’s Euros, Mainoo has experienced an indifferent season at Man United, making 25 appearances in all competitions thus far.
The 19-year-old has often been unavailable to Ruben Amorim through injury since he was appointed, which has obviously been a significant factor when considering his contributions.
That being said, talks over a new contract for Mainoo initially began this time last year when a deal was close to being concluded before the FA Cup final – a game in which the midfielder scored.
Mainoo’s success at Wembley was then followed up by his place in England’s Euros squad, and talks were then subsequently put on hold until the summer – eventually resuming in January.
Kobbie Mainoo wants to sign a new contract at Man United
Graeme Bailey – TBR Football chief correspondent, understands that there is now confidence from both sides that Mainoo will sign a new deal.
Lines of communication between Mainoo’s camp and United have remained open and in recent weeks talks have been ongoing.
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Chelsea have made enquiries to sign Mainoo recently but the player’s camp insist that this was never instigated by them, even if there was genuine interest from the London club.
Fortunately, Chelsea have since moved on, eliminating some of the noise about a potential departure – one that neither Mainoo or United want.
That being said, Mainoo’s camp were annoyed by leaks about what a new deal could look like in terms of the player’s weekly salary.
However, TBR are told by sources on both sides that they are now happy with how talks are progressing.
Ruben Amorim’s plan for Kobbie Mainoo
Of course, it’s worth noting that Mainoo has already played in a number of positions for Amorim, who suggested that he was still trying to find the youngster’s best position when speaking back in January.
Talking after a 2-0 win against FCSB in the Europa League, Amorim said: “We need time to understand the players, he was struggling a lot defending as a midfielder, now more as a 10 you can feel that he was so free playing the ball near the box.
“[His play] near the box is really good, the small connections so we need time to work with our players to understand what is their best position.”
Amorim has even used Mainoo in what appeared as a number nine role before his injury – something that should only strengthen his position within the squad moving long-term.
Although, most United fans would presumably still conclude that he is best in one of the central midfield roles in Amorim’s system, despite what he may currently lack defensively.
