Kobbie Mainoo has been brought back into the Manchester United side after being left out in the cold by former manager, Ruben Amorim. Under the Portuguese head coach, Mainoo didn\u2019t start a league game this season. Since Michael Carrick has come in as interim coach, Mainoo has started and played every minute in all five games.<\/p>\n
The system change suits his style, and he\u2019s perfect for Carrick\u2019s system, and the statistics show why it didn\u2019t work under Amorim.<\/p>\n
Kobbie Mainoo has played more minutes under United’s interim coach in five games than he did in 12 games under Amorim this season, 450 minutes in comparison to 311.<\/p>\n
Mainoo\u2019s style and Carrick\u2019s system go hand in hand. He\u2019s allowed to play in the #8 role, roaming forward and joining the attack more often, without much thought of defence. One of the reasons this works is because Casemiro has returned to form and is playing his role as a defensive shield as well as he ever has in a United shirt.<\/p>\n
Read More:<\/b> Who could replace Casemiro in the summer?<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n It shows in Mainoo’s output, doubling his assists for the season under Carrick. He was unlucky not to record a third but was denied by a marginal offside against West Ham.<\/p>\n Given the change in formation, it was assumed that Mainoo\u2019s defensive work would have increased. Carrick’s 4-2-3-1 system has removed a centre-back and could have exposed Mainoo\u2019s defensive frailties; however, that hasn\u2019t come to fruition due to the excellent recent form Casemiro has shown.<\/p>\n The young Englishman has an average rating of 7.05 across the last five games, and in Carrick’s midfield three, he is performing strongly. He\u2019s shown fantastic composure on the ball, been the player to link the defence to the attack and has been accurate and active in doing so.<\/p>\n Kobbie Mainoo\u2019s passing output has always been high, but under Carrick, it\u2019s particularly strong. Under Amorim in the league, Mainoo completed an average of 12.54 passes per game; under Carrick, he\u2019s averaged 56.40. These aren\u2019t just side-to-side passes back to the defenders, either. Under Amorim, Mainoo completed just six key passes, whereas with Carrick in charge, he already has seven. It is worth noting that starting and playing more does skew the statistics slightly; however, there’s no denying that he’s performing better.<\/p>\n His pass accuracy in the past five games is 92%, showing that he\u2019s being more considered when passing the ball, leaving the more risky, eccentric passes to his captain, Bruno Fernandes.<\/p>\n His style is perfect as a ball progressor and is a great fit for the style that Michael Carrick wants to play.<\/p>\n Read More:<\/b> Kobbie Mainoo on the brink of an England recall<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n As has been well documented, Ruben Amorim played Bruno Fernandes out of position in a deeper midfield role, consequently benching Mainoo. When rotating the team, Manuel Ugarte was preferred over Mainoo. The Uruguayan played 694 minutes under Amorim, compared to 311 of Mainoo.<\/p>\n The defensive statistics highlight why this may have been the case. Ugarte vastly outperforms<\/span><\/a> Mainoo in all defensive statistics, providing more cover for Amorim\u2019s defence compared to Mainoo.<\/p>\n The assumption is that Mainoo\u2019s defensive work was the reason that it didn\u2019t work under Amorim. During the past five matches, Mainoo\u2019s successful defensive actions per 90 minutes sit at just 4.30. Compare that to a man, who Manchester United are looking at bringing into the club, Carlos Baleba<\/span><\/a>, it\u2019s almost half, as Baleba averages 10 defensive actions per 90.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nThe Stats Supporting Mainoo’s Uptick in Form<\/h3>\n
The Amorim Struggle for Mainoo<\/h3>\n