Man Utd dressing room thinks Ten Hag has 'unearthed next big name in football'

30 January 2024 , 19:49

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Erik ten Hag's Man United squad have been left impressed by Kobbie Mainoo

Manchester United youngster Kobbie Mainoo is making quite the impression on his Red Devils team-mates as his rise to stardom continues.

The United academy graduate has enjoyed a breakout season and even netted his first senior goal for the club during Sunday's 4-2 win away at Newport County in the FA Cup fourth round. At just 18 years of age, Mainoo is seemingly never overawed by the occasion and has already starred for the club at hostile away grounds like Galatasaray's Rams Park or Newcastle United's St. James' Park.

It is for that reason that the rest of Erik ten Hag's dressing room feel as if Mainoo is quickly cementing himself as one of the first names on the team sheet, according to MailSport. The teenager has made the step up to senior level seamlessly and it has left several first-teamers talking.

Mainoo made his debut last term, but his first real run of games has come this season, with the midfielder featuring in 11 of the last 13 games since his first Premier League outing in November. The rest of the United squad are thought to agree with the Old Trafford faithful that a big future awaits Mainoo.

Speaking last month after a hard-fought point away at Liverpool, Ten Hag heaped praise on the young talent. The Dutchman claimed: "If you are good enough, you are old enough and he proved that.

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“When he gets used more often to those games, we will get even more joy from it. Because then his scanning and his speed of action, he can get such passes, three or four passes in and get switches in, and he is the player who can really hurt opponents."

In the aftermath of Sunday's FA Cup victory, ex-Liverpool midfielder and BBC pundit Danny Murphy echoed a similar sentiment to Ten Hag regarding Mainoo. The 46-year-old explained: "He’s been a real plus for Manchester United this season.

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Kobbie Mainoo (pictured with Alejandro Garnacho) has been impressing his Man United team-mates in training

"The emergence of him. I know he was known around the club but he’s really taken to first-team football so easily. He looks very established. Good without the ball and comfortable on it. He’ll save them a lot of money in the market."

Mainoo has been a rare shining light in what has been an otherwise underwhelming season so far for United. Ten Hag's side currently languish as low as eighth in the Premier League table and the FA Cup presents the club's last chance to secure some silverware this term.

Josh O'Brien