[ROFLUTION]

Thought he was quite alright. Some good decision making

 

[flameinthesun]

He was quite poor by his standards. Obviously his performance wasn't helped by those around him though.

He needs to learn to be more active in his movement in midfield which im hoping will come. I've kept quiet on this point as I've wanted to see more of him before making it but he definitely needs to learn to be more active in showing for the ball and giving options to his teammates. He does a lot of jogging into space and I'm not expecting sprinting but if he's going to become great in that position then he has to be a little more active in the midfield. Not that he should be performing like Rodri at this stage but when you see Rodri's movement its very intentional and constantly quickly moving into correct positions. I think Mainoo can very much do that but just needs to be a bit quicker in it and also hopefully gain more trust in his abilities at this level. He's talented and I think talent wise he has the ability to dominate games with the ball at his feet, he just needs to add some energy into his play.

 

[GledTheRed]

Fine performance, plays on his own in midfield with Hollywood passers.

 

[P-Nut]

Really didn't think he was that bad, especially first half. A small worry is the amount of times he gets ran past when defending a bit wider, but he really shouldn't be getting put in that position as often as he is.

Be interested to see how he stands up stats wise

 

[AltiUn]

Nowhere near as bad as some of you are making out, absolutely nowhere near.

 

[KjaAnd]

Wasn't very good tonight. But partnering him with Eriksen - and thereby creating the slowest midfield in the history of the game - is an inexcusable choice by the manager. Made it so easy for Spurs to play through the middle and difficult for us to win the ball back and control the game.

 

[P-Nut]

Went digging after mentioning he would be decent stat wise...

 

[DWelbz19]

The physicality of the game is too much for him in these matches and this system. We had one of the best DMs in football for the past however many years looking atrocious in a single midfield with Fernandes + McTom/Eriksen/Mount ahead of him - expecting an 18 y.o to do that role any better is madness

 

[Telsim]

Average. But he can be forgiven having to play alone in the midfield. There was a nice moment between him and Martinez when they managed to keep possession under press better than I have seen from any of the other dross.

 

[united for life]

What i absolutely love about him is his composure and decision making. He is very calm on the ball for an 18 year old. He also plays it simple and doesn’t complicate things. He is able to take decisions fast. He’ll just need to be properly taken care of to grow technically and physically. A very exciting young talent

 

[Pickle85]

He shouldn't be in a position where he's starting... He should be phased in slowly but we don't have that luxury. Feels like this game passed him by a bit. Solid in possession but was given the runaround by spuds.

 

[Gavinb33]

Really bad positioning for their goal the whole middle was left way open by him running to Bentancur

 

[Righteous Steps]

He needs to learn to be more active in his movement in midfield which im hoping will come. I've kept quiet on this point as I've wanted to see more of him before making it but he definitely needs to learn to be more active in showing for the ball and giving options to his teammates. He does a lot of jogging into space and I'm not expecting sprinting but if he's going to become great in that position then he has to be a little more active in the midfield. Not that he should be performing like Rodri at this stage but when you see Rodri's movement its very intentional and constantly quickly moving into correct positions. I think Mainoo can very much do that but just needs to be a bit quicker in it and also hopefully gain more trust in his abilities at this level. He's talented and I think talent wise he has the ability to dominate games with the ball at his feet, he just needs to add some energy into his play.

That should come with more games training and experience. He hasn’t played senior football at any level till this season.

 

[mu4c_20le]

He genuinely looks comfortable paying at this level. I don't mind if he isn't motm every game, the way he made the step up is very rare to see from someone his age.

 

[bosnian_red]

Really bad positioning for their goal the whole middle was left way open by him running to Bentancur

As Keane said, he gambled to close one guy down but the main fault was everyone else running way out of position. There wasn't a right choice to do there, one way or another he was massively exposed in the middle and had to much to cover. As is often the case with Ten Hags system. Asking far too much of the deep midfielders both in and out of possession and setting them up for failure.

 

[Scandi Red]

He started out OK but then he completely disappeared (just like Eriksen).

 

[Wheato]

He shouldn't be in a position where he's starting... He should be phased in slowly but we don't have that luxury. Feels like this game passed him by a bit. Solid in possession but was given the runaround by spuds.

not really. He was covering Erikson all game. He is not the Erikson that played for Spurs. Chasing shadows and being second to every loose ball. Bruno was playing as a second striker, so Mainoo was massively outnumbered in the middle, but he did hold it together and their goals didn’t come from holes in the midfield.

he needed Casemiro alongside him today. I thought AWB and Dalot were poor and they seemed to be exposed everytime Spurs attacked.

 

[Champ]

Went digging after mentioning he would be decent stat wise...

This just highlights how stats can be misleading,

He was average at best tonight, yet someone looking at these specially selected stats would think otherwise.

 

[Gavinb33]

As Keane said, he gambled to close one guy down but the main fault was everyone else running way out of position. There wasn't a right choice to do there, one way or another he was massively exposed in the middle and had to much to cover. As is often the case with Ten Hags system. Asking far too much of the deep midfielders both in and out of possession and setting them up for failure.

I dont think you can vacate the middle of the pitch, yes the structure had broken down but i still don't think you can leave the middle like that

 

[pascell]

Poor game from him, one for the learning curve for sure.

 

[bosnian_red]

I dont think you can vacate the middle of the pitch, yes the structure had broken down but i still don't think you can leave the middle like that

He didn't. He moved slightly to the left as there were 3 players fully open for Spurs. So he had to pick one guy to get closer to. Eriksen was so far out of position, there was a massive gap between our pressing group and deep defenders. It leaves an impossible task. If we are pressing with 5 players that high, we then need to position the sitting 5 at a much higher point. Doing the press and having the others deep just makes it easy for the opposition and makes it impossible for our DM.

 

[Zlaatan]

What i absolutely love about him is his composure and decision making. He is very calm on the ball for an 18 year old. He also plays it simple and doesn’t complicate things. He is able to take decisions fast. He’ll just need to be properly taken care of to grow technically and physically. A very exciting young talent

Couldn't agree more, he's incredibly mature for his age and seems to have a great understanding of what's around him at all times and what his options are. Has the potential to be a vital piece in a midfield that can control a game, which we all know we desperately need.

 

[Mockney]

He’s great, but we absolutely can’t be relying on an 18 year old in his debut season to be the basis of our midfield performances FFS.

 

[Ekeke]

Went digging after mentioning he would be decent stat wise...

As always desperate Dave is purposefully misleading

Mainoo made 1 tackle, 1 interception, 1 clearance

Mainoo averages 1.6 after that match, so usually he makes more than 1.

Eriksen made 1 tackle, 0 interceptions and 1 clearance

Hojbjerg and Bentancur both made 2 tackles, Skipp 1 and their midfield got on the ball more too

 

[Irwin99]

It's a compliment that that was probably the worst i've seen him in the first team and he wasn't that bad, just a bit too quiet. Struggled to get on the ball much but wasn't helped by Eriksen or the tactical set up.

He's at his best when we're not just looking to hoof it long for a winger to chase, he's good enough to get on the ball and play. I think most of us want to see him with a stronger midfielder beside him (Casemiro).

 

[Ballache]

Wasn't his best performance but even prime Pirlo struggles in this set-up.
This single pivot vision is the main reason ETH will get sacked and it doesn't get highlighted enough.
We simply don't have the players for it.

 

[Gavinb33]

Wasn't his best performance but even prime Pirlo struggles in this set-up.
This single pivot vision is the main reason ETH will get sacked and it doesn't get highlighted enough.
We simply don't have the players for it.

I agree completely, I have called for a midfield 3 of Case, Mainoo and Eriksen as an actual midfield 3 rather than having a number 10 since Mainoo broke through

 

[Ballache]

I agree completely, I have called for a midfield 3 of Case, Mainoo and Eriksen as an actual midfield 3 rather than having a number 10 since Mainoo broke through

I agree.
Mainoo needs a physical cm next to him. Bruno is very difficult to build around. I would also like to see Casemiro-Mainoo-Mount.

 

[The Hilton]

Looks the part - assured on the ball, combative, was overrun today but wasn't given much help

 

[RuudTom83]

GK and CB’s always bypass the midfield and go wide to the attackers at every possible opportunity.

The team plays with 4 high attackers almost 4 CF’s at times spread across the frontline.

Then whoever is in the middle (Mainoo) gets McTom (who also joins the forwards) for support.

It’s no surprise United haven’t won a midfield battle in the Prem all season.

So I’m just glad Kobbie actually looks like he wants to play in the middle and can hold his position…bravo kid!

 

[Andersons Dietician]

Hoping Cas comes back firing as I really want to see what Mainoo could do with hopefully the Cas of last season next to him. The guy looks to have everything you’d want. I just want to see more and I think he has levels to go just needs better team mates so he can show us what he has.

 

[Borys]

One thing he struggles with is physicality, good thing we pair him with Eriksen and Bruno both playing in advanced positions.
I think he's a good #6, but needs an actual partner. I think Casemiro + one more dynamic player (Mount?) is the way to go.

 

[Lost bear]

Average. But he can be forgiven having to play alone in the midfield. There was a nice moment between him and Martinez when they managed to keep possession under press better than I have seen from any of the other dross.

Didn’t see the game yet, and didn’t know Martinez played. How was he?

Apologies if it’s a bit off topic.

 

[Lost bear]

Wasn't his best performance but even prime Pirlo struggles in this set-up.
This single pivot vision is the main reason ETH will get sacked and it doesn't get highlighted enough.
We simply don't have the players for it.

This.

 

[Borys]

Didn’t see the game yet, and didn’t know Martinez played. How was he?

Apologies if it’s a bit off topic.

Looked usual himself. Assured on the ball, nice decisive passing through the lines. We didn't see him defending a lot so that's still a question mark.

 

[lex talionis]

If we're applying the standard of prime Roy Keane or even Michael Carrick (who for some reason is always ignored here...the man is a club legend) then of course Kobbie Mainoo's performance comes up short. But my god he looked really good tonight by any reasonable standard.

In 1989, when Roy Keane was 18, he was playing for Cobh Ramblers. I have no idea how great Roy Keane was with Cobh Ramblers, but it's a good bet that he wasn't that much better match to match than Kobbie Mainoo was tonight v Tottenham Hotspur.

The point of this is that we need to keep context in view when judging the performances of our players. We expect a lot more from Antony, age 23, than we do from Mainoo, age 18, for obvious reasons. As much as it is true that Mainoo did not control the tempo of the game v Spurs, he did put in a surprisingly good shift against a very decent PL side. And considering his experience at this level, his performance was outstanding. But yes, Mainoo still has quite a development in front of him before we can judge him on even terms against top sides in the PL.

 

[Bwuk]

It’s clear he’s a good player, but he’s been asked to do an impossible role with the gaps in the midfield.

 

[AshRK]

18 year old playing with a pensioner , eriksen, and a careless individual, Bruno, and to make it worse a useless fella in Mctominay and yet is doing a good job in mf, tells you a lot. He would look a world class athlete if he had players like FDJ or Rodri or Rice with him. I hope he is not burnt out carrying our midfield.

 

[MrBest]

Been the most consistent midfielder all season for us and he is 18. We can't expect stand outs every game, he's one for the future and judging with what we have seen so far, he will be some player.

He's played 8 or 9 games so far, he's still getting in rhythm as he was injured at the start. When Casemiro is back and ready, it will be interesting what happens with his development. Super glad and happy he's a red.

 

[Yagami]

Poor lad. He's basically a one man midfield every time he plays.