Kobbie Mainoo is ready to leave Manchester United on loan in January after getting increasingly frustrated with his lack of opportunities under Ruben Amorim. The midfielder was an unused substitute during United's 1-1 draw with West Ham on Thursday, the fourth time he has remained on the bench in a Premier League game this season. The 20-year-old is still yet to start a league game this term.

Getty Images SportMainoo set to seek loan move again

Mainoo, who asked to leave United on loan in the summer but saw his request rejected by the club, is ready to seek a loan again in January, according to . Mainoo is described as being 'deeply frustrated' with the lack of opportunities Amorim has given him, only starting him in the Carabao Cup tie against Grimsby back in August. The report claims Mainoo would prefer a loan move abroad, with Bayern Munich having shown interest in signing him in the past. United, however, are expected to wait until the Africa Cup of Nations is over and whether Noussair Mazraoui, Bryan Mbeumo or Amad Diallo sustain injuries during the tournament.

The decision over whether Mainoo will be allowed to leave in January, as fellow United academy graduate Marcus Rashford did earlier this year, comes down to whether United prefer to have him around for Amorim to call upon for the remainder of the season or will prioritise protecting his value for a future sale by assisting him in kick-starting his season by playing regularly elsewhere.

AdvertisementMidfielder repeatedly snubbed by Amorim

United wasted a huge opportunity to move into the Premier League's top five when they drew 1-1 at home to struggling West Ham, conceding an 83rd-minute equaliser by Soungoutou Magassa after Diogo Dalot had given them a second-half lead. Amorim used all five of his substitutions in a bid to win the game but did not turn to Mainoo, who has played a grand total of 171 minutes in the league this season spread across nine appearances off the bench.

And when it was suggested by a journalist in the post-match press conference that Amorim could have brought on Mainoo to boost United's attack, the coach laughed. Mainoo was seen as the club's future central midfielder for many years when he broke into the team under Erik ten Hag in November 2023, delivering an outstanding performance on his debut at Everton. 

He locked down his place in the starting XI and scored the winning goal in the FA Cup final against Manchester City. Mainoo also played a big role in England's run to the final of Euro 2024, playing in all but one match and starting all of the knockout games. But he has barely featured this season, with Amorim sticking with the midfield pairing of Casemiro and Bruno in 12 of the 14 matches and starting Manuel Ugarte in the two games the Brazilian has missed.

Getty Images SportAmorim: I know you love Mainoo but…

Amorim told a press conference: "Of course, I understand. My job is to answer but I am trying to answer always the same thing. And you ask me always the same thing. I understand what you are saying. You love Kobbie. He starts for England, but that doesn’t mean I need to put Kobbie when I feel I shouldn’t put Kobbie.

"I see it. I see it and I just want to win, I just put the players, I don’t look who it is, I don’t care about that, I just try to put the best players on the pitch. You have Ugarte that played two games, one of them, Case was out. Bruno is always fit, he’s the guy that is doing his position so maybe it has to do with that."

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

AFCON absences won't necessarily help Mainoo

United will lose Mbeumo, Mazraoui and Amad for around a month due to the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations which begins later in December. The trio will have to report for Cameroon, hosts Morocco and the Ivory Coast respectively on Monday December 15, the day United are due to host Bournemouth. They could be involved in the tournament until the final on January 18.

Although none of the players play in midfield, their absences in theory open up more opportunities for Mainoo to play, especially if Amorim decides to put Bruno Fernandes further forward into the attack while Mbeumo is away. But Amorim was not prepared to make any predictions about whether Mainoo would get a bigger role in the team during the AFCON.

"I don’t know, I don’t know," he said. "It’s the same question. I don’t know what is going to happen. It depends. If I see in the training it is the best thing, I will put it. That is the only way I know how to respond to that."

Despite using Mainoo so little, Amorim has said that he will not allow the midfielder or another out of favour player such as Joshua Zirkzee to leave the club in the January transfer window.

In the end the target was well out of reach for Hong Kong but there are greater challenges ahead

Danyal Rasool10-Sep-20251:36

Mukund: Dropped catches a concern for Afghanistan

While Pakistan have five days between the final of the tri-series on Sunday and their first game in the Asia Cup on Friday, Afghanistan did not get that luxury. Less than 48 hours after a humbling defeat in that game, they lined up for the tournament opener of the biggest T20I competition this year.They were aware that, bunched together in a group with Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, defeat against Hong Kong would put them on the brink of elimination as soon as the tournament began. They needed to shake the early nerves off, but four balls into the game, Sediqullah Atal nicked Hong Kong seamer Ayush Shukla to first slip.It felt like a continuation of their horror run with the bat from two days earlier and a hundred miles further north, when Afghanistan folded for 66. But this is a new tournament, and it brought with it better fortune for the Afghans. Captain Yasim Murtaza put the sitter down, and it would be two hours before Atal walked off: not as a man vanquished, but one who had batted through his side’s innings, scoring an unbeaten 73 off 52 as Afghanistan ran up an imposing 188, 34 more than the average first-innings score in Abu Dhabi.Related

Trott: Afghanistan 'not shy about achieving new things or breaking new ground'

Bangladesh in need of a handout against buoyant Afghanistan

Kaushal Silva: 'No one is going to hand us anything'

Atal, Omarzai and Afghanistan bowlers dismantle Hong Kong

It was a sliding-doors moment Afghanistan coach Jonathan Trott acknowledged.”We started averagely today,” Trott said following the game. “We were a bit fortunate with a few dropped catches that sort of let us off. We need to make sure we improve on a few areas for the rest of the group games. We’ve got a few days off now. We’ve had a hectic schedule, six games in 12 days. So this is a good win. An important game for us and glad we’ve won it in the style we have.”However, for a side that opened the tournament with a 94-run win, Trott emphasised how far away this performance was from Afghanistan’s ceiling, or even the median level the coach has come to demand of this ever-improving group.Much of the concern will come from another turgid batting display for four fifths of the innings, when Hong Kong kept themselves in the game with the ball; better fielding would have put them in an even handier position. With 24 deliveries to go, Afghanistan had shuffled along to 119 for 4, needing to accelerate to even get to that average Abu Dhabi score.Azmatullah Omarzai ensured Afghanistan had plenty of runs in the bank•Getty ImagesIt was only as Hong Kong’s bowling fell away, particularly in an errant 17th over from Ateeq Iqbal, that the quality gap between these two sides began to reveal itself. A pair of sixes, a pair of fours, and a pair of balls that produced three wides combined for a 25-run over. With Azmatullah Omarzai at his explosive best, Shukla – of first-over misfortune – was pumped for another 24 in the penultimate, and 69 came off the final four.It took the target well beyond Hong Kong’s realistic ability, but Trott was adamant not to let this paper over the cracks.”We need players to take responsibility,” Trott said. “For me it’s important some of our players need to get in some form and need to start going runs. That’s very important.”I would like us to have batted better. But then the way Sediq played and the way Azmat came in and hit the ball showed us it’s a pretty good pitch. I’m fairly happy with the total that we got, but there are still things we need to work on and make sure we’re ready for the rest of the games.”

“We’ve won nothing. Let’s just make that clear. We’re an up and coming side and we’ve got a lot of work to do”Jonathan Trott

The strength of Trott’s words suggest he wants to head the problem off before the stakes are raised. They have a week off before two games in three days, with the quality of opposition vastly superior in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. One of those three sides – barring a miracle from Hong Kong – will be elbowed out at the expense of the other two. Trott appeared to warn his players – despite the heavy win – that a drop in level might mean it could be them against more familiar opponents.”All three teams have played each other quite a lot. We know each other quite well,” he said. “Recently we haven’t played a lot of games each other, but in the last couple of years we have. It’s about remembering those things that we’ve done well against them individually but as a side as well. For me, Azmat coming into a bit of form today and Sediq carrying on the form that he’s been in [are good signs].”But still, we need to play better because I think we were helped a little bit by Hong Kong’s fielding. Because if Azmat had been caught or Sediq had been caught in the first over, it could have been a very different game so we need to make sure we’re better in the next few games.”2:26

Mukund impressed by Afghanistan’s on-field trial

However, Trott knows the difference between self-criticism and dwelling on the past, and where he was keen to draw the line was that dispiriting loss in the tri-series final to Pakistan on the weekend.”This win was helpful just to move on and get past the final and move on and go into the Asia Cup,” he said. “So we don’t have to dwell on a very disappointing game for us which I think we were a good shot of winning at the halfway mark. Lessons learnt and I think the guys applied those lessons very well. We’ll get those habits going again, and get ready for the next game.”Afghanistan now come with a large fan following, particularly in the UAE, where their supporters perhaps outnumbered Pakistan’s in that final on Sunday. It is by far the most followed sport in a country that has bought into South Asian cricket fan culture much the same way as the more established nations from the region, with every moment, decision, selection or omission parsed and analysed to within an inch of its life.1:36

Chopra: ‘It will take time for Atal to mature into a T20 rockstar’

That support may be the lifeblood of a cricketing ecosystem, but in tournaments like these, it is not always helpful.”I’m not really worried about the media’s expectation or the outside expectation,” Trott said. “I’m worried about our expectation as players and as a side that we have for each other, and the standards we hold each other to on the field and off the field. That’s the most important thing. If we get those right, the bigger picture will take care of itself. We’ve been pretty good and come pretty close to being within a shot of a few things. But we need to be better.”We’ve won nothing. Let’s just make that clear. We’re an up and coming side and we’ve got a lot of work to do.”With that unflinching focus on constant improvement, Trott, and Afghanistan, may change that over the next three weeks.

The fast bowling duo were in the nets in Sydney on Tuesday as focus turns to the second Ashes Test

Andrew McGlashan25-Nov-2025In an encouraging sign for Australia, Josh Hazlewood returned to the nets on Tuesday as he recovers from the hamstring injury that kept him out of the opening Ashes Test in Perth.Pat Cummins, meanwhile, was pictured bowling with a pink ball as he continues his push to return for the day-night Test at the Gabba following his back injury.The pair trained at Cricket Central in Sydney while New South Wales were playing their Sheffield Shield match against Tasmania.Related

• Hazlewood suffers Achilles soreness during hamstring rehab

• Hazlewood set to miss Brisbane, Cummins pushes for return

• The world where Lyon doesn't play at the Gabba

• Bartlett, Sandhu dismantle Victoria under Gabba lights

In what looked like clear evidence of immediate priorities, Hazlewood was bowling with a red ball. He is not expected to be available for the Gabba Test, so his comeback target will be Adelaide, which has reverted to a day Test this year.Speaking on Monday, Australia coach Andrew McDonald was confident that Hazlewood would be available later in the Ashes.”I know that he’ll be available at some point during the series,” he said. “We’ve got a little bit of that early rehab to go through to formulate where he may plug into the series, but we expect him to take some part in the series.”Cummins has been making good progress in ramping up his bowling in recent weeks and looked impressive in the nets in Perth ahead of the opening Test. The selectors will need to be fully confident that he can get through the workloads required for a Test, even if the early indications are that matches in this series may not go the distance.”It looked like a player that was nearing the completion of his rehabilitation,” McDonald said. “The intensity was there, the ball speed was there. There’s a lot of positives, but now it’s just really building that resilience within the soft tissue and making sure that we’re not putting him in harm’s way in terms of accelerating it too much.”The first three Tests of the series are well spaced out – the gap between the first and second now 11 days after the two-day finish in Perth – but the schedule does become more condensed from Adelaide onwards: there is a four-day gap to the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne and the same to Sydney if those matches reach the fifth day.Pat Cummins has a go with the pink ball•Getty Images

With the day-night pink-ball element thrown into the mix for Brisbane, there is a good chance that it could be another short, sharp Test. In the current round of Sheffield Shield matches, ten wickets fell in the night session of the third day between Queensland and Victoria to hasten the contest to a result, although wickets hadn’t fallen at the same rate on the first two days.In that match, Xavier Bartlett put in an eye-catching performance with 4 for 35 in the second innings alongside a career-best 72 with the bat. Australia may not need further pace reinforcement during the Ashes, especially if Cummins and Hazlewood are available, but Bartlett, who has impressed in ODIs and T20Is, may have moved himself up the queue.Michael Neser was the spare pace bowler in Perth and the Gabba is his home ground. His two previous Tests have been with the pink ball in Adelaide: against England in 2021-22 and West Indies in 2022-23.In the build-up to the Ashes, the selectors also spoke of their hope that Jhye Richardson may become an option later in the series as he returns from the shoulder surgery he had earlier this year.He trained with the Test squad in Perth and then bowled 20 wicketless overs for the Cricket Australia XI against England Lions at Lilac Hill. He is expected to feature for Australia A against the Lions in Brisbane next week.”This game was a lot about physical preparation for me and making sure that we can get through,” Richardson told reporters after the CA XI outing. “I’m sure there would have been a few people seeing a bit of ice on it after the bowling but that’s basically just maintenance. The shoulder’s feeling really good and it’s feeling better and better each bowl.”It’s a decent hit out, the most overs I’ve bowled in a while and it’s all part of the process to building up to be ready for four and five-day cricket.”

Welcome to WordPress. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start writing!