Kobbie Mainoo’s future at Manchester United is under fresh scrutiny after club legends Paul Scholes and Nicky Butt launched blistering criticism of Ruben Amorim’s handling of the young midfielder. Mainoo, 20, has been heavily linked with a January move away from Old Trafford as he continues to struggle for minutes.
The academy graduate, who joined United at the age of nine and rose through the youth ranks, broke into the first team under Erik ten Hag during the 2023/24 season. But since Amorim’s arrival last November, he has failed to become a regular starter and is yet to begin a Premier League game this campaign, logging just 183 league minutes – all from the bench.
Amorim has taken a hard-line approach to reshaping his squad, banishing several senior players to what has been dubbed the “bomb squad”: Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho, Antony, Alejandro Garnacho and Tyrell Malacia. Mainoo has not been formally lumped in with that group, but his lack of game time is becoming increasingly worrying. Across United’s last three fixtures he has featured for a combined total of just 13 minutes.
The situation has infuriated Scholes, who believes Mainoo is good enough to be starting regularly and even claims the youngster is making Casemiro look bad in training.
Scholes: Mainoo is ‘embarrassing’ Casemiro and has to leave
Speaking on The Good, The Bad & The Football podcast, Scholes blasted Amorim’s approach and questioned why Mainoo is still on the fringes.
“Ruben Amorim has said Kobbie Mainoo is a starter… every appearance he’s made in the Premier League has been as a sub. Things like that wind me up,” Scholes said.
“I wouldn’t mind if he was in a good team and they were winning every week and keeping possession, but they’re rubbish. Kobbie is a 20-year-old kid and he’s not playing – he’s going to have to leave.
“What will happen now is Amorim will finally throw him into a game and he won’t look great, but that’ll be because he needs a run of matches. Fair enough, sometimes as a manager you just don’t fancy a player, but look at what he’s already done – scored the winner in an FA Cup final, played every game at the Euros.”
Scholes went even further when comparing Mainoo to Casemiro.
“I bet he takes the mick out of Casemiro every single day in training and is brilliant,” he added. “I don’t know why the club are letting Amorim treat a homegrown talent like that.”
Despite previous criticism, Casemiro has generally performed well this season and clearly has Amorim’s trust. Yet at 33 and with his contract up next summer, he is not regarded as a long-term cornerstone of the midfield.
Scholes believes Mainoo’s development is being wasted and, if a club like Chelsea come knocking, he would urge the youngster to walk away from Old Trafford.
“If he rang me and said: ‘Look, Chelsea are interested, what do you think?’ I’d tell him to go all day long,” Scholes admitted.
Butt: Mainoo will be a superstar somewhere else – maybe at Chelsea
Butt is equally angered by how Mainoo is being treated and hinted strongly that a move away from United might be the best solution. He pointed to United’s 1-1 draw with West Ham at Old Trafford as a prime example of Amorim’s questionable selection calls.
“The Kobbie one is an absolute joke,” Butt said. “I went to the West Ham game and it was an absolute sh*tshow. It was a terrible, boring game.
“The player to bring on to change it, in my opinion, was Kobbie Mainoo – but he didn’t even get on the pitch. He’ll be another homegrown player who leaves and becomes a superstar somewhere else.”
Butt argued that if Mainoo were impressing at another Premier League club, United would probably be willing to pay a huge transfer fee for him.
“If Mainoo was playing for another Premier League club, United would go and buy him for £70m or £80m. Now we’re going to sell him and he’ll be a superstar elsewhere like McTominay, Elanga, Henderson – we can name loads of them,” he continued.
“We’re getting rid of players who love the football club, it’s mind-boggling. I get the Garnacho one because his attitude and behaviour was terrible, but you don’t hear that about Kobbie.”
Butt did not hold back in his assessment of the damage being done to Mainoo’s career.
“He’s a top, top, top player that we are messing up. Kobbie has got to go. If I’m looking after him I’m telling him: ‘We’re getting you out of that football club.’ For his career he has to leave United, he’s already lost 18 months of development.”
The former United midfielder believes a move abroad would be preferable but admits a switch to Chelsea is a realistic prospect.
“I hope he goes abroad because it’s embarrassing if he goes to Chelsea, which could happen,” Butt said. “They might go and get him because they are putting together a really good, young squad and keep signing young players. He could easily end up at Chelsea next season.
“I’ve known Kobbie since he was eight, but you wouldn’t be doing him justice if you told him to stay and not take that move. That’s such a sad thing for me to say.”
With both Scholes and Butt openly advising Mainoo to leave, pressure will mount on Amorim and Manchester United’s hierarchy to either hand the midfielder a bigger role – or risk watching another homegrown talent flourish elsewhere.
