Man Utd legend Teddy Sheringham has likened Kobbie Mainoo to one of his former teammates, Roy Keane.

The 20-year-old’s ability to keep the ball is one of his main qualities, and while he doesn’t think Mainoo is particularly eye-catching in possession, Sheringham told BestBettingSites he plays an important role in United’s midfield:

“I don’t think Mainoo is an “exciting” player. I think he’s more like Roy Keane – he does things that are invaluable to the team, but you don’t necessarily come away from the game saying, “Wow, Mainoo, what a great player.”

“If you keep doing the right things on the football pitch and keep things ticking over, you get noticed without being noticed. You are doing the right things at the right time, keeping the ball in midfield, and maintaining possession. That is hard to do in central midfield. I keep telling people that you only need one or two touches in midfield. As long as you keep the ball, you’ve done your job.”

“I’m always telling young players – and top players, even the players when I was managing at Stevenage – you need to keep the ball and keep possession in midfield. Mainoo does that, and that’s why he’s back in the England fold.”

Mainoo’s record since his debut backs up Sheringham’s point

While many believe that the England international has what it takes to produce the goods in the final third, that is not what we have seen from him until now.

Mainoo has 7 goals and 5 assists to his name in 96 appearances for the Red Devils, which means he averages a goal involvement every 8 matches.

The midfielder has yet to score in 24 games this campaign, although admittedly he has only started in half of those. Even so, his key strength appears to be recycling the ball and giving it to more creative players like captain Bruno Fernandes.

He is set to commit his future to Man Utd

Recent reports suggest that Mainoo will extend his contract to remain at Old Trafford. His current deal expires next year (although United do have an option to increase the length for another twelve months),

Even a few months ago, it didn’t look likely that the midfielder would be staying with the Red Devils, having fallen out of favour under Ruben Amorim, but the arrival of Michael Carrick has transformed his fortunes.

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