Before this season, Manchester United youngster Kobbie Mainoo had only made three senior appearances for the club. During the 2022/23 campaign, he'd earned a full debut in a 3-0 League Cup win over Charlton, then come off the bench in victories against Leicester in the Premier League and Reading in the FA Cup.
He wouldn't play his first senior game of 2023/24 until late November, when United travelled to Goodison Park to face Everton, but Erik ten Hag has included him in the line-up for ten out of 11 games since, and nine in a row.
Mainoo, who recently scored a stoppage-time winner to settle a seven-goal thriller away to Wolves (having also netted in the previous match against Newport in the FA Cup), is under contract at Old Trafford until 2027, but he may already be in line for an extension.
United ready contract offer for Mainoo
According to Fabrizio Romano, Man Utd have already held talks over a new contract for Mainoo. There have been "initial discussions" with the player's camp over an extension after his spectacular emergence.
United are ready to present a formal offer to the 18-year-old to underline his status as a "crucial" part of their long-term project. Predictably, he's set for a pay rise, but it's unclear how many more years will be added.
Mainoo in Ronaldo territory as Ten Hag delighted
When Mainoo continued his run of starts against West Ham last weekend, he became the sixth-youngest player to reach ten Premier League appearances for Man Utd, and he was only a day older than Cristiano Ronaldo was when he reached that milestone in 2003.
Already establishing himself as a key player for United, Mainoo is without question one of the outstanding breakthrough talents in English football this season.
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Indeed, United fans overwhelmingly voted him as their player of the month for January (63%) ahead of Bruno Fernandes (21%) and Alejandro Garnacho (16%). After his heroics against Wolves, he's already one of the leading contenders for the February prize too.
August
Bruno Fernandes
September
Casemiro
October
Scott McTominay
November
Alejandro Garnacho
December
Alejandro Garnacho
January
Kobbie Mainoo
Ten Hag has been delighted by what he's seen from the Englishman, who may yet play an important role in turning United's miserable season around, and says he's getting better every time he sets foot on the pitch.
He said: "In this moment, he is progressing from game to game and this is what big talents are. They take every time the challenge and achieve in short notice higher levels and that is what Kobbie is doing at this moment. We are really pleased and it’s really enjoyable to watch him play football."