Kobbie Mainoo may miss the balance of preseason for Manchester United after being forced to leave Thursday’s encounter against Real Madrid on crutches
After leaving Thursday’s preseason friendly against Real Madrid on crutches, Kobbie Mainoo, a midfielder for Manchester United, will raise questions for manager Erik ten Hag about his physical condition. In the first minutes of United’s 2-0 defeat at Houston’s NRG Stadium, the 18-year-old was forced off.
Following several successful preseason appearances, Ten Hag continued to believe in Mainoo and started him in midfield with Casemiro and Bruno Fernandes.
Six minutes into the friendly match between United and Real, Casemiro brought Rodrygo down as he raced toward the goal, and the Brazilian collided with Mainoo as he went down.
It converted the highly-rated teenager’s dream situation against one of the world’s top midfielders into a nightmare.
To make matters worse, Jude Bellingham scored when United were down to 10 men as Christian Eriksen waited to enter the field, giving Real an early lead.
Joselu added a late second with a spectacular overhead kick, handing Ten Hag’s senior squad their first pre-season defeat
Concerns were raised after full-time when images on social media showed Mainoo leaving the stadium on crutches while wearing a protective boot.
Ten Hag stated in his post-match press conference that Mainoo would be given more opportunities this season, regardless matter how serious the issue was.
“I understand the question [about the nature of the injury].” But it’s impossible to determine after a game. “We’ll have to wait and see,” Ten Hag told reporters.
“Hopefully, it won’t be too bad, and then opportunities will present themselves.” I was curious to see what levels he could master. We were thrilled with his effort against Arsenal.
“I wanted to see if he could do it again a few days later.” We’d have conclusions by then. We must first wait for the diagnosis before reaching any conclusions.”
United’s preseason tour of the United States concludes on Monday with a match against Borussia Dortmund in Las Vegas.
Before the Premier League season begins, United face Lens at Old Trafford and Athletic Club in Bilbao the following weekend.
As he bids for a key role in Ten Hag’s plans this term, Mainoo will hope to partake in at least one of those fixtures.
