Kobbie Mainoo was handed his first start of the season in Manchester United’s Carabao Cup defeat at Grimsby Town, with Rio Ferdinand and Paul Scholes discussing his situation
Rio Ferdinand insists that Kobbie Mainoo needs to step up his game at Manchester United, dismissing Paul Scholes’ “wild” comparison of the youngster to Zinedine Zidane.
Mainoo was given his first start of the season in United’s Carabao Cup second round defeat by League Two side Grimsby Town on Wednesday night. Despite a promising start, the Red Devils found themselves 2-0 down before half-time, with a late equaliser from Harry Maguire taking the match to penalties.
The cup upset was completed when Bryan Mbeumo hit the bar with his spot kick, resulting in a 12-11 defeat for United. Mainoo played the full 90 minutes and set up Mbeumo for United’s first goal, but the loss may have done little to convince manager Ruben Amorim to include the 20-year-old in his future plans.
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During a recent episode of the Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast, co-host Joel Beya brought up comments made by Scholes, who claimed Mainoo was far superior to himself at the same age. Beya said: “Kobbie Mainoo has been a ghost man throughout this period.
“We’ve got the likes of Paul Scholes saying, ‘He’s the nearest thing I’ve seen to Zidane in taking the ball, receiving the ball, cruising past people. I’ve read a few comparisons between me and him and this kid. Don’t waste your time. He is 10 times the player I was at 19.’
“If I’m Kobbie Mainoo bro, and you’re not playing me and obviously the fans are still cheering for Amorim to stay, I could be looking for another club at the end of the season?”
However, Ferdinand wasn’t entirely convinced by this argument. He described his former team-mate’s comments as “a bit wild” when drawing parallels between Mainoo and the French football legend.
Beya mentioned that Ferdinand had likened the young midfielder to Clarence Seedorf, prompting the former England captain to reply: “I think he’s more of a Seedorf player, that’s what I think. I think his style of football is more Seedorf.”
Discussing his thoughts on the Scholes-Zidane-Mainoo comparison, Ferdinand said: “But Scholes saying he is 10 times the player he was, and I think you’ve got to remember that telling number there at 19. At 19.
“That’s what he’s saying, Scholesy wasn’t developed yet, still had fantastic potential, but Scholes had asthma, he couldn’t finish games properly at a young age and stuff. He wasn’t nowhere near the player he became at 19.
“At 19, this kid is playing in European championships, do you know what I mean? It’s not like he’s a kid who was there and you’re going, ‘Oh, he’s just in the youth team, just got out of the youth team or the under-21s.’
“He was playing for England, starting for England. Scholesy at 19 wasn’t doing that. So that’s where he’s talking about the comparison. But listen, I’m a massive fan of Kobbie.”
Ferdinand went on to detail just how Mainoo should be pushing for a start in Amorim’s side, adding that he hopes the chance doesn’t come if the young star isn’t prepared. He said: “But he has to work out, ‘What do I need to do to get back in his team?’
“And we’ve all had these moments in our careers where you’re like, ‘S*** man, I’m not playing. What do I do?’ Well, the first thing you do is go to the manager and go, ‘What am I not doing that I need to be doing to get in this team?’ Right. He’s going to tell me. Then I go to work on a training pitch.
“Every day I go to work. I play up against whoever, Bruno [Fernandes] etc, and I start dominating them. Just that’s the type of mentality and mindset he has to go with. And then when the chance comes to play, take it with both hands.
“Now his argument right now will be I’m not getting the chance to take it. And that’s a fair argument. But what I would say is do not let the chance come and you’re not ready. So train hard, be focused.”
Mainoo appeared to have been handed his opportunity on Wednesday evening in the Carabao Cup, and many might contend that he compensated for falling two goals behind by providing one assist and converting his penalty. But Beya reckons that the midfielder is unlikely to receive many more favourable decisions under Amorim, owing to the Portuguese boss’s rigid system that he “refuses to change.”
He added: “I agree Rio, but I also think he is going to be someone suffering because of this system that Amorim plays and he refuses to change it. You know like it’s you’ve got the talent there man no one can tell me that Kobbie Mainoo cannot play football, no one can tell me that boy isn’t brilliant.
“One of the best talents I’ve ever seen, and you’re telling me for whatever reason he couldn’t get minutes yesterday [against Fulham]? He couldn’t even come off [the bench]?”
According to The Athletic, United are content with Mainoo’s presence at the club and have no plans to let him leave before the September 1 deadline. However, rumours suggest that the 20-year-old’s market value has plummeted from £70million to £45m in recent weeks, and could dip even further before the transfer window closes.
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