‘That is not an issue’ – Amorim says Mainoo won’t be punished for brother’s T-shirt message
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However, Amorim encouraged the 20-year-old to take the same path as some of the club’s greatest players and propel himself back into contention for a starting place.
Mainoo may be given that chance against Villa, with Casemiro suspended for the match in the west Midlands.
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McCoist on ‘bizarre’ lack of game time for Mainoo at Man Utd
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“Kobbie needs to fight for his job,” said Amorim in his pre-match press conference. “I think that it’s not a bad thing to be on the bench of Manchester United when you are 20 years old.
I remember Ronaldo was on the bench, Rooney was on the bench sometimes, (Juan Sebastian) Veron was not playing.
“I’m not trying to say to Kobbie, ‘you are a big player here, let’s put him on the bench to show something’. No, what I’m saying is the opposite. I’m just not putting Kobbie in sometimes, because I understand that this is not the right guy to start the game. Maybe the next game, Sunday, he is going to start.
“If he plays well, is going to show everyone ‘this guy cannot take me out of the team’, and I will be so happy.
“So I don’t care. I don’t want to show nothing to anyone. I’m just saying that I’m trying to win games and to show to the players that if you do the things right, you will play no matter what the name.”
Amorim revealed that Mainoo would not be punished for his half-brother’s actions, and empathised with the player after experiencing something similar as a player at Sporting Lisbon.
He continued: “I had the situation in Sporting Lisbon. My brother wrote something on the internet, and I have to answer for that. My explanation is that he has his life, he has his opinion, and it’s nothing to do with me. So I will do the same with Kobbie.
“He’s responsible for his acts and his act was to play well in the last game, I’m just focused on that.
“So let’s continue in trying to avoid the nonsense and the noise. I just want to help the team to win and to help Kobbie to be a better player.”
After Sunday’s match against Unai Emery’s side, The Red Devils are back in action on Boxing Day when they host Newcastle United at Old Trafford, before finishing 2025 with a home match against Wolves on December 30.
