Kobbie Mainoo gives his thoughts on surprise England senior team call-up – Man United News And Transfer News

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Finally, the meteoric rise of the season has been punctuated with the ultimate stamp of approval.

Kobbie Mainoo made the headlines today after being surprisingly called up to the England senior team.

The Manchester United midfielder was initially a part of the U21s as Gareth Southgate sought to protect him from the hype of too much too soon.

However, his virtuoso performance against Liverpool looks to have made his case ironclad as he became a shock candidate to be promoted to the senior team before ever having an appearance for the U21s.

This decision is being widely lauded as calls for Mainoo to be fast-tracked had become deafening long before this decision was made.

Now, the player has given his thoughts on the unexpected development.

Mainoo revealed that he was still in shock at the turn of events and talked about the way it happened which caught him completely off-guard.

He said: “I got a text from Steve Holland telling me to come and meet him at reception, and he just told me I’ve been called up, and I’m going to be training with the squad for the week…

“I don’t think it’s really sunk in yet, but I’m excited!”

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Kobbie Mainoo: “I got a text from Steve Holland telling me to come and meet him at reception, and he just told me I’ve been called up, and I’m going to be training with the squad for the week…”.

“I don’t think it’s really sunk in yet, but I’m excited!”. pic.twitter.com/iG4D0yiTYq

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) March 19, 2024

Holland is Gareth Southgate’s Assistant Manager so a call from him instead of the U21s manager would have surprised Mainoo.

This development seals a meteoric rise for the player who, when the season began, was widely believed to be a candidate for promotion to the U21s.

Instead, at just 18, he has become the fulcrum of this United side and the face of calm amongst the chaos that reigns on the pitch.

His ability to receive the ball on the half-turn, skip past markers and then pass progressively makes it so that his skillset is unique in this English midfield.

With the likes of Declan Rice, Jude Bellingham, and more being box-to-box dynamos instead of playmakers, someone like Mainoo can complete the team and an ideal midfield.

If he takes to international football the same way he took to club football, the Three Lions will have a maverick in their ranks for the next 15 years at least.