[Remember the geese]

Hes better than he is currently showing combination of lack of proper midfield partners, manager shackles and lack of experience holding him back. I think hes actually wasted as the 6

You're right. He's far too restricted. Need a proper 6 for him to play alongside.

 

[Paddymcc]

Very very intelligent player. Noticed a couple of simple things he was doing like body checking players to shield the ball from a tackle that you don't normally see 18yr olds doing. Really smart how he works the player and ball in tackles.

Will be phenomenal in a few years with the correct coaching and teammates around him.

 

[Valencia Shin Crosses]

Mostly looked good tonight, but needs better players around him to pick up his slack, namely his lack of pace. Oddly he showed some speed to get back and stop that chance middle of the second half, but there was a turnover later on where he just stood around instead of chasing the attacker and they broke as a result.

We have the most modern/ ready made/technically secure midfielder Carrington has produced sans Pogba in the past 20 years and people are worried about his pace. Sums it up really.

 

[Trequarista10]

are people joking about worrying about his pace?

he's a CM i couldn't give a feck

Agreed. He's about as quick as the average of top CMs/DMs. And those that are quicker don't tend to have his quality. He's also 18 and will get quicker, strong and more stamina in the next few years.

This place would moan about prime Xavi/Modric/Busquets being slow if we had them. Or maybe it's a racial thing because people think a black DM should be a physical ball winner.

 

[Adnan]

His pace is more than fine and I believe he'll improve in that regard as he physically matures. He's only 18 and is being trusted to play a crucial position in midfield by the coach. And the highlights below clearly demonstrate his technical level on the ball, where he creates space for himself superbly well. I know there's certain fans who like to see midfielders pinging long balls about, but having a midfielder who is technically secure in possesion with the ability to resist and evade the press is even more impressive imo.

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[TheLittleOne]

really like this kid. He plays so mature for his age. We would be wise to offer him a sensible/good contract extension.

 

[Nicoseth]

Best player on the field tonight by a mile. We need to build around him, Garnacho and Hojlund - they're the future.

 

[AshRK]

Class player this lad. Hope he stays fit , will have a top career.

 

[RikRuud]

He's doing what I thought we would be getting from Amrabat. We've got a serious player on our hands here.

 

[Sea-Cow]

are people joking about worrying about his pace?

he's a CM i couldn't give a feck

Haha I try to keep in mind that he is still recovering from a significant injury that kept him out for a number of months, and being so young he can always mature physically as he kinda looks to be carrying a little bit of baby weight still, but I am not joking when I say that sometimes he looks like he is running in sand while carrying current day Wayne Rooney on his back.

I remember one instance in the first half today, against league 1 opposition, that someone was dribbling right down the heart of our midfield towards our goal, and I kept waiting for Mainoo to sprint and to try to catch up to the guy, and..... he just didn't. He stayed the same pace, and he got nowhere near the player.

I think it is acceptable to have a CM that "lacks a bit of pace" if they can compensate in other areas. But this looks like way more of an issue, as it is right now, than simply lacking a bit of pace. And yes, even thought he is a CM, I think it is an issue that quality players will exploit. Look at the liverpool game recently, where Ryan G. saw that he could dribble past Mainoo and started doing it at will. Thats a problem. If he can't track runners properly because he can't keep up with them? Thats a problem.

And I get slightly annoyed at the retorts bringing up Scholes and Carrick. Is it possible that their lack of pace was adequately covered by being surrounded by world class players at every position? Carrick had Darren Fletcher to cover every blade of grass, and Mainoo has Scott McT. Scholes had freakin Roy Keane or Nicky Butt as possible midfield partners, and Mainoo has Scott McT or Bruno. Is it possible that Scholes and Carrick's lack of pace might have been more noticeable and more of a problem if they were on a midtable team, surrounded by midtable players, as Mainoo currently is?

 

[LDUred]

It is staggering how much better on the ball he looks than the majority of our players.

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[daba]

His chart on datamb is interesting although it's currently a small sample size. Defensive actions and duel % are what stands out and you can see it during matches. Not much ball carrying at the moment but hopefully when he gets stronger and more experienced it will develop.

Yeah similarly his FBref report is nothing to shout home about apart from is defensive parts which look good. Most likely indicative of the team he is in, the role he is playing and the fact that nobody else is capable of retaining the ball so he’s not being so progressive with his play generally. I think if he played alongside Casemiro or even Amrabat who can offer proper cover too we will see him be more progressive with his passing and his carries like a De Jong, as he certainly has it in his locker.

 

[lex talionis]

The boy is ridiculous. Imagine what he’ll be capable once he gets his 10th full 90 under his belt.

 

[Licha-Vidic]

His pace is more than fine and I believe he'll improve in that regard as he physically matures. He's only 18 and is being trusted to play a crucial position in midfield by the coach. And the highlights below clearly demonstrate his technical level on the ball, where he creates space for himself superbly well. I know there's certain fans who like to see midfielders pinging long balls about, but having a midfielder who is technically secure in possesion with the ability to resist and evade the press is even more impressive imo.

Tweet

— Twitter API (@user) date

Agreed. He's about as quick as the average of top CMs/DMs. And those that are quicker don't tend to have his quality. He's also 18 and will get quicker, strong and more stamina in the next few years.

This place would moan about prime Xavi/Modric/Busquets being slow if we had them. Or maybe it's a racial thing because people think a black DM should be a physical ball winner.

I believe Mainoo has not tried to perfect his rapid running because of how he was soo ahead of the curve in the lower age game. He was so composed in the midfield for the youth/academy game that he didn't perfect rapid running as a mode of his best attribute.

As you can see already the guy can run fast and cover ground well when necessary. It's just he needs now to learn when to burst in runs because it's now against big boys. Xavi couldn't sprint and run like Vidal but Xavi could pass Vidal in circles till morning. When you're a good midfield passer you don't need explosive pace to beat press, opponent, twist turn or progress the ball. Yet again we have too many direct players in the team.

We have seriously lacked a recycler of the football in the team, if Mainoo does become a recycler 60% like Xavi then we have a 10-15 year player in our hands.

 

[lex talionis]

I hope the INEOS crowd understand what happened to our previous young phenoms such as Martial and Rashford to make sure the same thing doesn't happen to Mainoo.

 

[Ekeke]

IMHO he's a Fabregas level talent so I don't think it's dumb he was our best player. Just happy he's ours and doesn't look fazed or affected by our circus.

Even if he is theres no reason why he should be playing better than players in their prime like Rashford and Bruno

 

[Slevs]

So calm, he's the real deal. Impressed every game I've seen him.

 

[Pronewbie]

Even if he is theres no reason why he should be playing better than players in their prime like Rashford and Bruno

I take it as a positive. In fact I would be delighted if more of our youngsters like Ganarcho and him come in, outperform the senior players and take their place. It's what this club is built on.

 

[AndySmith1990]

Even if he is theres no reason why he should be playing better than players in their prime like Rashford and Bruno

There's a very simple reason he's playing better than Rashford. Rashford is an arrogant lazy arse who lacks work ethic. Any professional putting in the effort will look the better player

 

[Telsim]

Decent, I thought. Needs to grow into his own body, though, which is understandable. Might need to consider moving away from here at some point. It would be a shame to see his talent go to waste.

 

[kafta]

Looked untouchable last night. He has a way of gliding effortlessly on the pitch. And his decision making is already so impressive.

 

[Grande]

Haha I try to keep in mind that he is still recovering from a significant injury that kept him out for a number of months, and being so young he can always mature physically as he kinda looks to be carrying a little bit of baby weight still, but I am not joking when I say that sometimes he looks like he is running in sand while carrying current day Wayne Rooney on his back.

I remember one instance in the first half today, against league 1 opposition, that someone was dribbling right down the heart of our midfield towards our goal, and I kept waiting for Mainoo to sprint and to try to catch up to the guy, and..... he just didn't. He stayed the same pace, and he got nowhere near the player.

I think it is acceptable to have a CM that "lacks a bit of pace" if they can compensate in other areas. But this looks like way more of an issue, as it is right now, than simply lacking a bit of pace. And yes, even thought he is a CM, I think it is an issue that quality players will exploit. Look at the liverpool game recently, where Ryan G. saw that he could dribble past Mainoo and started doing it at will. Thats a problem. If he can't track runners properly because he can't keep up with them? Thats a problem.

And I get slightly annoyed at the retorts bringing up Scholes and Carrick. Is it possible that their lack of pace was adequately covered by being surrounded by world class players at every position? Carrick had Darren Fletcher to cover every blade of grass, and Mainoo has Scott McT. Scholes had freakin Roy Keane or Nicky Butt as possible midfield partners, and Mainoo has Scott McT or Bruno. Is it possible that Scholes and Carrick's lack of pace might have been more noticeable and more of a problem if they were on a midtable team, surrounded by midtable players, as Mainoo currently is?

You shouldn’t get annoyed at people mentioning Carrick and Scholes, they probably just remember those times better. They remember that the midfield duo par excellence in our best period from 2006-2008 was exactly Scholes and Carrick, covering each other. Hargreaves couldn’t hack it as CM ahead of them, and eventually played more games as right back, while Fletcher didn’t become first choice really before the 2008-9 season.

 

[Borys]

He needs to be playing in two man midfield, rather #8 role than #6. He can still drop deeper to collect the ball and progress it, but there is so much more to his game than being a "DM".
Similar to Casemiro really.

Shame we're playing the double #10 system and he will not be getting any chances as #8.

 

[Rossa]

We have the most modern/ ready made/technically secure midfielder Carrington has produced sans Pogba in the past 20 years and people are worried about his pace. Sums it up really.

He's not slow - he showed a couple of times yesterday that he can cover ground fairly quickly when he needs to/turns on. The issue seems to be that he sometimes switches off when defending and doesn't defend the open spaces as well as he could, but he kept up with and seem to win a couple of foot races against a couple of players that appeared rather quick. He also moves fairly well with the ball going forwards.

 

[DWelbz19]

His chart on datamb is interesting although it's currently a small sample size. Defensive actions and duel % are what stands out and you can see it during matches. Not much ball carrying at the moment but hopefully when he gets stronger and more experienced it will develop.

I think that’s the next step for his development — being comfortable and able to take on senior players in middle areas of the pitch with his dribbling. It’ll come with time as he fully acclimatises to the game, I reckon.

That, and his progressive passes have to shoot up.

But right now he’s still doing the fundamentals fantastically for his age and level.

 

[Beachryan]

Give him the keys to Old Trafford. Can't wait to see him and Casemiro together, so much he can learn from the Brazilian. Plus it means he won't be playing with McT and Bruno, which is like an anti-midfield.

 

[Borys]

He's not slow - he showed a couple of times yesterday that he can cover ground fairly quickly when he needs to/turns on. The issue seems to be that he sometimes switches off when defending and doesn't defend the open spaces as well as he could, but he kept up with and seem to win a couple of foot races against a couple of players that appeared rather quick. He also moves fairly well with the ball going forwards.

I don't see that, he seems really slow running at full speed, but at the same time very agile and quick in first few yards. It's a bit strange but not a particular worry, as he shouldn't be playing single DM anyway.

 

[David De Gea]

Its a sign of our team and the shit we've been served that it's so refreshing to see a midfielder with the control and composure to do something as simple as turn with the ball while retaining possession.

So used to seeing the likes of McTominary turn with the turning circle of an oil tanker and see the whole endeavour verge on disaster the whole time. With Mainoo it looks do calm and simple with McT it's like watching a car crash in slow motion.

 

[Rossa]

I don't see that, he seems really slow running at full speed, but at the same time very agile and quick in first few yards. It's a bit strange but not a particular worry, as he shouldn't be playing single DM anyway.

Well, he did factually compete very well in two foot races yesterday. I think it's more of a question of applying himself in those situations. It's still early days for him. He's come back from an injury and needs time to settle, also physically.

 

[Rossa]

Give him the keys to Old Trafford. Can't wait to see him and Casemiro together, so much he can learn from the Brazilian. Plus it means he won't be playing with McT and Bruno, which is like an anti-midfield.

I think Mainoo alongside Casemiro with Bruno/Mount/Eriksen ahead can be brilliant going forwards.

 

[Borys]

Well, he did factually compete very well in two foot races yesterday. I think it's more of a question of applying himself in those situations. It's still early days for him. He's come back from an injury and needs time to settle, also physically.

It's definitely not a worry but he seems Casemiro/Amrabat fast over a distance. It's just weird because sometimes he seems to be moving at twice the speed compared to everyone else over a short distance.

 

[Gordon Godot]

Its a sign of our team and the shit we've been served that it's so refreshing to see a midfielder with the control and composure to do something as simple as turn with the ball while retaining possession.

So used to seeing the likes of McTominary turn with the turning circle of an oil tanker and see the whole endeavour verge on disaster the whole time. With Mainoo it looks do calm and simple with McT it's like watching a car crash in slow motion.

He is good. But what is equally shocking that for the last few years under Fergie and ever since we have lacked a player like this. Carrick was struggling towards the end. I remember Fergie had lined up a replacement that Moyes dithered over, cant remember who that was. All those midfielders we have signed since then and all pretty much useless, Casimero and Eriksen aside

 

[RedRonaldo]

He is the kind of midfielder I’ve been dreaming of all these years playing for us. Class apart.

 

[JeffFromHK]

He is good. But what is equally shocking that for the last few years under Fergie and ever since we have lacked a player like this. Carrick was struggling towards the end. I remember Fergie had lined up a replacement that Moyes dithered over, cant remember who that was. All those midfielders we have signed since then and all pretty much useless, Casimero and Eriksen aside

Thiago
then Moyes reached an agreement with Kroos and LVG vetoed the transfer

 

[romufc]

I think Mainoo alongside Casemiro with Bruno/Mount/Eriksen ahead can be brilliant going forwards.

Agreed. I cannot wait to see how the midfield looks once Casemiro is in. Mainoo Casemiro can be quite dangerous, given Casemiro also has ability to play as an 8. We have been exposed in the past where Casemiro tries to win the ball back high and no one back, this was with Mainoo covering, we may turn the ball over alot more.

 

[slored1]

Absolute baller. Been a while since we had this kind of midfielder in our team, so press-resistant and proactive. Monster.

 

[DomM]

He looks a great prospect, even at 18 he is so calm on the ball and sees things really quickly, his positioning is good and he never shys from the ball, complete opposite to Mctominay, he is going to have a great career.

 

[KiD MoYeS]

Alongside Evans and Garnacho as our best performers this season.

 

[Son]

The best player from our academy since another little guy named Paul Scholes.

These players take good sides and can make them great with the right infrastructure around him. His IQ is very rare in the game.

If Real Madrid had this guy they would be building a midfield around him also long term. He’s that good from what I can see.

 

[Pogue Mahone]

So refreshing to see a United player go into a skirmish for the ball and not end up with the opposition team in possession. Such a contrast to so many other players in the team who are constantly losing those battles.