Thomas Tuchel has assured Kobbie Mainoo he will play for England soon, after the Manchester United star failed to get on the pitch at the World Cup.
Aside from third-choice goalkeeper James Trafford, Mainoo was the only star not to play a single minute of the Three Lions’ run to third-place at last summer’s tournament.
The 21-year-old went to the finals off the back of a strong end to the season with United and seemed to be next in line to play centre-midfield after Declan Rice and Elliot Anderson.
But even when Rice was struggling with form and fitness, Tuchel’s preference was to drop Jude Bellingham or Eberechi Eze into a deeper role, or even play right-back Reece James in the middle.
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Mainoo’s snub was strongly criticised by fans and pundits throughout the tournament but he’ll have the opportunity to show Tuchel what he was missing after being called-up to the England squad for the upcoming Nations League campaign.
At the time, it was reported that the England manager was unimpressed by Mainoo in training but in his press conference on Friday, Tuchel said that was not the case and shared regret at not playing the Red Devils star.
‘I expect him to be on the pitch and it’s my duty to put him on the pitch,’ the German said when asked how much playing time Mainoo would actually get during the international break.
‘That was totally on me, he did not put a foot wrong at the World Cup. He was class in behaviour and on the training pitch.
‘It was a big competition. We also played Reecey in midfield, Elliot Anderson is fantastic, Declan Rice is a very unique player. So we trusted them more than we trusted Kobbie.
‘It was difficult for him, difficult for me. He got injured before the France game [the third-place play-off] so we could not even give him minutes there which hurt me.
England squad for September/October 2026
Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford (Everton), Jason Steele (Brighton), James Trafford (Leeds United)
Defenders: Trent Alexander-Arnold (Real Madrid), Jarrad Branthwaite (Everton), Trevoh Chalobah (Como), Marc Guehi (Manchester City), Lewis Hall (Newcastle), Ezri Konsa (Arsenal), Tino Livramento (Newcastle), Nico O’Reilly (Manchester City), Jarell Quansah (Bayer Leverkusen)
Midfielders: Elliot Anderson (Manchester City), Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid), Myles Lewis-Skelly (Arsenal), Kobbie Mainoo (Manchester United), Cole Palmer (Chelsea), Declan Rice (Arsenal), Alex Scott (Bournemouth)
Forwards: Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Leeds United), Eberechi Eze (Arsenal), Anthony Gordon (Barcelona), Rio Ngumoha (Liverpool), Marcus Rashford (Manchester United), Morgan Rogers (Chelsea), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal)
‘Maybe he was more hurt but it was my responsibility.’
Mainoo is one of two Manchester United stars in the England squad, alongside Marcus Rashford, though the club have endured an awful start to the season.
Michael Carrick is already under pressure having won just one of their opening four Premier League games and getting knocked out of the Carabao Cup by Brighton despite being 2-0 up after 10 minutes.
The Red Devils will aim to get back on track in their last game before the international break, when they travel to win-less Fulham on Sunday.
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