Ruben Amorim has told Kobbie Mainoo that he is the ‘future of Manchester United’ and won’t be allowed to leave on loan in the January transfer window if the club cannot sign a replacement.
Mainoo is desperate to move away from Old Trafford next month after it emerged that the 20-year-old’s relationship with his boyhood club is at breaking point.
But United blocked his attempts to join Napoli on loan in the summer because they couldn’t sign a player to take his place, and Amorim warned that the situation is no different now.
Mainoo missed out on the chance to make his first Premier League start of the season last weekend when he picked up a calf injury in training on Saturday, and then captain Bruno Fernandes – who has been keeping him out of the team – suffered a hamstring strain in the defeat at Aston Villa 24 hours later.
Both players will miss tonight’s (fri) Boxing Day clash with Newcastle at Old Trafford, although Amorim indicated Fernandes could be back in as little as three weeks and Mainoo much sooner.
‘Kobbie Mainoo will have the opportunity,’ said the United boss. ‘He’s going to be the future of Manchester United, that is my feeling. He just needs to wait for his chance and everything can change in football in two days.
Ruben Amorim has told Kobbie Mainoo he is the ‘future’ of Manchester United – despite the star’s desire to leave the club
‘The day before it was Kobbie (being injured) and then it was Bruno. We were talking about how Kobbie doesn’t have the minutes that he deserves or needs, then you have the opportunity and Kobbie is not there. So sometimes it’s bad luck.’
Napoli are once again at the front of the queue for Mainoo, but United insist they will not sign any stop-gap replacements in the January window and may wait until the summer to bring in a new midfielder.
Asked if the club would let Mainoo leave next month, Amorim said: ‘If we are not getting someone, it is hard to leave. Even with a full squad, we are shorter for something that can happen here. If we can bring someone, good. If not, we’ll spend money in the summer I think.
‘We are a club with a big responsibility. We are dealing with all this issues and everybody said we need to win every game. It doesn’t matter, there’s no excuses. So it’s going to be hard for someone to leave the club if we don’t get a substitute.
‘Kobbie played in different positions. We talk about the position of Casemiro (defensive midfield). He can do that position. If we play with three (midfielders), he can play there.’
Casemiro makes a timely return from suspension tonight (fri) for a United team missing seven players. In addition to Mainoo and Fernandes, Matthijs De Ligt and Harry Maguire are still injured, and Bryan Mbeumo, Amad Diallo and Noussair Mazraoui are away at the Africa Cup of Nations.
The Brazilian will be free to talk to foreign clubs in six days’ time, with United yet to trigger an extension in his £375,000-a-week contract, but Amorim hasn’t ruled out the possibility of him staying beyond this season and is confident the former Real Madrid star will remain as professional as ever.
‘I’m not saying he’s going to continue or not,’ said the head coach. ‘But if you pay attention to everything that he does, with a contract, with no contract, he’s a top player.
‘When I see Casemiro training, if everyone trains like him – if everyone is so focused on the detail, even training in set-pieces – we’ll be a top team. You can understand why that guy won five Champions Leagues.’
