Gareth Southgate was very complimentary of England and Manchester United starlet Kobbie Mainoo after his full Three Lions debut.
The 18-year-old, Kobbie Mainoo, was given the chance to impress from the start and he did exactly that. The starlet showcased the kind of composure and technical ability that has made him a regular at Old Trafford so soon after bursting onto the scene. It was a late Jude Bellingham strike that spared England’s blushes and prevented two friendly defeats from two fixtures against Brazil and Belgium respectively.
Youri Tielemans bagged twice either side of Ivan Toney’s penalty, but Bellingham popped up with one of the last kicks of the contest to ensure the honours ended even. Mainoo more than anyone held his playing in a midfield alongside the likes of Bellingham and Arsenal ace Declan Rice.
After the game, Southgate was asked what he told Mainoo as he came off the pitch late on in the second-half. The England boss said: “Just that he has had a fabulous week with us”.
“Everything that we’ve seen with his club, he reproduced in an England shirt which isn’t always the case. Very calm, receives the ball so well under pressure, strong, so we are a little bit more open playing that way but the benefits with the ball were clear to see.”
Southgate clearly thinks very highly of Mainoo, heaping praise on the teenager before the game as well as after. Ahead of kick-off, he explained: “He seems very calm. You can see he is taking everything in.
“Talking to him tactically, he seems able to take all those concepts on. A lot of young players now, with their academy education, are able to do that. You can see his comfort with the ball and receiving in tight areas.
“There are a lot of steps being taken in a very short period of time, but you saw in the brief cameo the other day some of the qualities he has. Sometimes, with the really young ones, they are not even thinking about that.
“It is all flowing and maybe then as you get a bit older you start to think about it a bit more. It is a beautiful, innocent moment when he is just in the flow and lapping up the opportunities as they come.”
Mainoo only made his full Premier League debut for United less than 125 days ago, but is now being viewed as a certainty to be on the plane for Euro 2024 in Germany this coming summer.