14 March 2024 , 18:45
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Kobbie Mainoo has been a shining light in an otherwise miserable season for Manchester United this term, but hasn't done enough in the eyes of England boss Gareth Southgate.
The 18-year-old made his full Premier League debut for the club back in November and hasn't looked back since. Since then, he's made 22 appearances across all competitions and shown that despite his age, he is more than comfortable operating in the middle of the park for a club as big as United.
Therefore, many fans and pundits alike were hoping to see Mainoo's name on the Three Lions squad-list for the upcoming friendlies against Brazil and Belgium. However, the teenager hasn't made the cut and is instead expected to feature for the Under-21s.
However, ex-England international and Liverpool legend John Barnes has explained that Mainoo's omission may not be a bad thing, given United's poor form means the Red Devils academy graduate will only be subject to more scrutiny at international level
Barnes told bonuscodebets : "Should Mainoo be playing for England? Why don’t we give him time to develop? He’s playing in a team that’s not even in the top five or four.
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"United aren’t playing particularly well so why are we going to put pressure on him. If he was playing that well, wouldn’t United be in the top four or five and they’re not.”
"So I’m not going to get carried away because he’s playing well and having a good breakthrough season. And he is playing very well but as with all young players, let them develop slowly and he’ll get his rewards later on."
HAVE YOUR SAY! Should Mainoo have been selected by Southgate? Comment below
Gareth Southgate has explained why Kobbie Mainoo hasn't made the England squad on this occasion (PA)Southgate actually shed light on his reasons for overlooking Mainoo on this occasion and his sentiment was similar to the one shared by Barnes. The England boss highlighted the fact that the talented teen simply hasn't played enough games.
"I think that he's doing brilliantly for a young player and we're never slow to put a young player into seniors," Southgate claimed. "But he's only had a handful of games and you have to be very careful development-wise in making those decisions at the right time.
"So we think ideally, we should allow him that space to develop at his own speed. He's not at the point in terms of number of games that Jude (Bellingham) and Bukayo (Saka) were when they came in for the first time.
"But I repeat: he's doing really well for a young player. He's a good footballer - you can see that. And he's getting some fabulous experience with Manchester United at the moment. And he looks a really good character."
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