Mainoo’s Man Utd contract dance: Henry Winter makes BIG Chelsea claim

Robin Bairner

8 Jan 2025 10:16 GMT
3 min read

Kobbie Mainoo, Man Utd, 2024/25 — © IMAGO

Rumours linking Kobbie Mainoo with a transfer away from Manchester United and to Chelsea are all part of the “dance of the deal”, highly respected journalist Henry Winter believes.

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Mainoo has been associated with a stunning move from the Red Devils amid concerns that they are not willing to offer him a sizeable enough salary.

The England international burst onto the scene in 2024, but Man Utd suddenly appear vulnerable to losing one of their biggest assets, according to various sources. David Ornstein is one of those who has claimed that Mainoo could be sacrificed by the Old Trafford club, for example.

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Winter believes, meanwhile, that this talk is being fuelled by the player’s side in order to get a better deal from Ruben Amorim’s side and that there is no real prospect of him leaving Old Trafford.

“I assume it's part of the dance of the deal,” Winter told Sky Sports. “And he's not particularly well paid, certainly by Manchester United's stratospheric standards. And he wants a new deal.

“He should very much be part of Manchester United's future. He's 19. He's an England international. He's been outstanding. He was very good at the weekend, homegrown. He's just the type of player that they should be holding on to.”

© IMAGO - Kobbie Mainoo and Lisandro Martinez

Mainoo to Chelsea analysed

Furthermore, Mainoo to Chelsea at this point in time makes no sense, Winter says.

“You see him being linked with a club like Chelsea. He wouldn't get into Chelsea's midfield at the moment,” he added.

“Chelsea need defensive reinforcement. So I hope this is just a sort of contractual dance at the moment because he needs to stay at Manchester United. They need him. And he's got a path to develop further there.”

Mainoo has yet to hit the heights this season that he did last term, but according to data analytics firm SciSports, he has the fourth-highest potential ceiling of any Man Utd player behind Leny Yoro, Alejandro Garnacho and Rasmus Hojlund.