Kobbie Mainoo has had a solid international break with England U19 as he continues his road back to full fitness for Man Utd.
The 18-year-old has featured in a series of fixtures for the young Three Lions squad in Marbella, which began with a 6-0 romping against Romania – where Mainoo featured off the bench.
Then it was a tough test against Japan, where Mainoo managed 76 minutes in a game with a dramatic last-minute goal. It was also revealed he captained the side whilst he was on the pitch.
Now, a final game against Mexico awaited – which ended up in an eight-goal thriller for England’s U19 side, with Mainoo right at the heart of it.
Kobbie Mainoo vs Mexico U19
Kobbie Mainoo captained the England U19 side that won the Marbella Cup in emphatic fashion by defeating Mexico 7-1.
The match report states that Mainoo had significant involvement in the romping. He managed a full 90 minutes and two assists for his country.
His first assist came just on the half-hour mark when Mainoo latched on to a misplaced pass from the Mexico keeper and unselfishly squared to Dominic Ballard – who scored a hat-trick in this fixture.
Kobbie Mainoo's assists vs Mexico 🎥 pic.twitter.com/oCkE3YLeSz
— utdreport Academy (@utdreportAcad) November 21, 2023
His second assist came from another mistake. Joshua Duffus intercepted a back-pass to the goalkeeper and Mainoo then just had to lay the ball off to Ronnie Stutter, who fired into an empty net to make it 6-1.
A fabulous 90 minutes in the tank for Mainoo, who played arguably his best game yet since his return.
Kobbie Mainoo captains his country to silverware
The win meant England secured the Marbella Cup, which was a nice touch to add to what was really just a lot of friendlies for Mainoo and co.
Kobbie Mainoo and Elyh Harrison both started for England U19s as they won the Marbella Cup by defeating Mexico 7-1 pic.twitter.com/XBKTOH9ywA
— utdreport Academy (@utdreportAcad) November 21, 2023
As you can see in the photo, Mainoo is clearly sporting the red captain’s armband. He’s already displaying leadership qualities.
Hopefully, Mainoo can captain Man Utd to some silverware in the future.
