Koby Mainu got the contract he deserved after his outrageous run at Manchester United, but no one did anything to help him while Ruben Amorim was in charge.
Jason Wilcox and Koby Mainu sign new contracts with Manchester United (Image: Manchester United via Getty Images)
Breaking with recent tradition, Manchester United got things right for the first time. The English giants woke up and gave Koby Mainoo the contract he deserved.
But by disrupting the status quo, they have also managed to keep some executives at Old Trafford as red-faced as the team’s famous shirt.
Take Jason Wilcox, for example. Without a trace of shame or embarrassment, Wilcox paid tribute to Mainu’s qualities in a club statement, confirming that the England midfielder has signed a new contract that will keep him at United until 2031.
“Coby is one of the most naturally gifted young soccer players in the world,” Wilcox said. “His technical ability, dedicated professionalism and humble personality make him the perfect role model for our young players and a true credit to our outstanding academy system.”
read more: Koby Mainu agrees luxurious new contract with Man United that quadruples his annual salaryread more: Manchester United: “Jorge Mendes offers midfielder to two clubs,” opening possibility of exchange deal
This is definitely true. But Wilcox’s comments raise one obvious question.
If Mainu remained so valuable to the club, why did bosses like Wilcox and co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe take the square root of doing nothing while former manager Ruben Amorim put the 21-year-old’s career on hold?
Despite struggling to win games, United’s board allowed the failed manager to ignore one of the brightest young talents in English football.
Mainu did not start a league game this season under Amorim until he was (eventually) sacked. He played just 171 minutes in the league and was left out to dry after United’s humiliating Carabao Cup exit to Grimsby Town.
This scenario became so detrimental and unacceptable to Mainu that he negotiated with Napoli for a loan move for the remainder of the season.
Koby Mainu was finally treated with the respect he deserves (Image: Oli SCARFF/AFP, Getty Images)
Why was this allowed to happen? Amorim’s treatment of the Mainu was shameful, but it highlights two things.
This proved that with Amorim’s approach he may never succeed at the highest level. And it exposed Wilcox & Co.’s weaknesses in doing what was necessary to protect one of the club’s most valuable assets.
When United make a move to replace Casemiro this summer, they will discover, at their own expense, just how lucrative signing a world-class midfielder can be.
But here United were seriously damaged by a manager whose stubbornness led to his downfall, sitting back and watching the progress and future of the team he had already signed.
Thanks to Michael Carrick, United finally made sense and should take lessons from this episode. But the club shouldn’t have had to do that in the first place.
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