A T-shirt worn by Kobbie Mainoo’s half-brother was among the post-match talking points at Old Trafford – even after a game as thrilling as the 4-4 draw between Manchester United and Bournemouth.
Jordan Mainoo-Hames wore a ‘free Kobbie Mainoo’ T-shirt during the match, a move that risks making a delicate situation even more fraught.
Mainoo’s United future is the subject of huge debate, with head coach Ruben Amorim yet to hand him a single Premier League start this season.
Amorim has defended himself on numerous occasions against allegations he does not rate Mainoo and that he has no trust in United’s academy.
The 20-year-old was keen to join Napoli in the summer but United refused to sanction the move.
Mainoo was introduced to rapturous applause with just under 30 minutes left of Monday’s game against Bournemouth. It was his third-longest runout in a Premier League match this season, taking his minutes for the campaign to 302.
It is understood that Napoli are still keen to sign the England international – as are a large number of other clubs.
But United know if they were to let Mainoo leave for the remainder of the campaign to improve his chances of making England’s World Cup squad, they would have to spend significantly more to bring in a replacement because he is on relatively low wages.
Amorim was not asked about the T-shirt post-match, but spoke about Mainoo last Friday.
He refused to say if he would sanction a January move but he would welcome Mainoo seeking him out for a chat.
“I had some conversations with him, especially last year, and with other players, but about that subject, no, I didn’t speak with him,” said Amorim.
“I will be really pleased if Kobbie comes to talk to me about that. I just want my players happy.
“I understand every individual has their goals and the frustration doesn’t help anybody.
“I’m not going to say what I would say but I would talk to him.
“I am completely open, that is clear. I have my ideas and that is also clear. I will not change if I don’t believe it but I’m open to speak with any player. I love that.”
Amorim has not just upset Mainoo recently.
Before the Bournemouth game, he claimed 18-year-old defender Harry Amass was “struggling in the Championship” with Sheffield Wednesday, even though he is the club’s player of the month. In addition, he said 18-year-old forward Chido Obi was “not always a starter in the Under-21s”.
The comments are understood to have gone down badly with both player representatives and senior academy staff.
Both 18-year-olds posted on social media highlighting their achievements before later deleting their posts.
Amass posted a photo holding Sheffield Wednesday’s player of the month award for November with a smiling emoji, while Obi also posted an Instagram story showing him celebrating a goal for the Under-21s against Manchester City in August.