Kobbie Mainoo Shines in Manchester United's Midfield Rebuild

Kobbie Mainoo steals the show as £150m United rebuild watches on

Manchester United have ripped up and rebuilt their midfield this summer, throwing £150m at the problem. On Sunday, the most influential player in that area of the pitch cost them nothing at all.

Kobbie Mainoo, straight off the academy pitches of Cheadle and Stockport, ran the game in United’s 5-2 demolition of Ipswich at Old Trafford. While the new signings carried their price tags, the 21-year-old carried the team.

“I thought he was brilliant, Kobbie,” the defender said. “To say he hasn’t played for I don’t know how long – not really got many minutes in pre-season and things like that, he was magnificent.”

The numbers on the scoreboard told one story. Mainoo’s work without the ball told another. That, Maguire insisted, is where the real transformation has come under Michael Carrick.

“He put a great shift in and I think his work without the ball has improved so much since Michael has been in,” Maguire said. “That’s probably credit to Michael and his staff. But I think without the ball now, he’s becoming a real monster in there, and he wins a lot of second balls. He wins a lot of duels. You won’t want to play against him in there and that’s the biggest compliment I can give to him from playing and watching him behind.”

It is not just the aggression that stands out. Mainoo’s calm, his rhythm in possession, his refusal to panic under pressure all point to a player who looks entirely at home in a side trying to reassert itself at the top end of the Premier League.

Maguire, who has lived the highs and lows at Old Trafford, framed it in the context of a decade-long future.

“He’s so young, if we want him to play for this club for another 10 years, there’s going to be times where he’s going to go through a patch like with Rashy and myself, but that’s part and parcel,” he said. “I think he’s really level-headed, he’s really composed, he has great belief in his ability and he’s going to be a magnificent player for this club for many, many years.”

United’s summer spending has been about importing quality, experience and ready-made solutions. On Sunday, the clearest answer to their midfield questions came from within.

The club may have paid heavily to reshape the middle of the pitch, but if Mainoo keeps performing like this, the heartbeat of Carrick’s United could end up being the lad who cost them nothing at all.