Kobbie is showing his class

The Academy graduate was watched by England boss Thomas Tuchel in the 1-1 draw at West Ham United, last time out, and is pushing for a recall at international level, ahead of this summer's World Cup finals.

Having had to be patient for his opportunity this term, he was selected by Darren Fletcher for the Emirates FA Cup defeat to Brighton & Hove Albion, after returning from injury as a substitute at Burnley.

The Manchester derby win over City was his first Premier League start of 2025/26 and, yet, he showed no signs of any rustiness.

The 20-year-old has kept his place in the XI ever since, and registered two assists - for Matheus Cunha's winner at Arsenal and Bryan Mbeumo's well-worked opener at home to Tottenham Hotspur.

Only Bruno Fernandes, inevitably, has more in this period for the Reds, with four, and Kobbie scores highly in a number of other metrics in the statistics supplied by Opta. He has won possession in the middle third of the pitch more times (13) than any other colleague since 17 January and, of the outfielders, only Lisandro Martinez has played more minutes under Carrick.

What is worth noting is that our homegrown hero scores highly in both offensive and defensive areas, suggesting he is fully grasping the demands of his role in the side.

For chances created, he has logged seven. While that's a long way behind Bruno (22), it is more than any other Red, which is impressive considering the probing ability of the likes of Mbeumo, Casemiro, Amad and Cunha.

We all recognise and appreciate Mainoo's passing ability and this has been evident since his return to the line-up. Calm and composed under pressure, he can be relied upon to find a colleague and keep possession.

SUCCESSFUL PASSES SINCE 17 JAN

1. Lisandro Martinez - 315
2. Kobbie Mainoo  - 255
3. Bruno Fernandes - 225
4. Casemiro - 203
5. Harry Maguire - 192

SUCCESSFUL PASSES IN FINAL THIRD SINCE 17 JAN

1. Bruno Fernandes - 107
2. Kobbie Mainoo - 78
3. Casemiro - 59
4. Amad - 58
4. Luke Shaw - 58

Off the ball, Mainoo has also been outstanding, of late, having won possession in the final third (five) and middle third (13) more times than any other Red.

In terms of winning the ball all over the pitch, only Martinez outscores him - 23 to 22.

There are two other areas where he is excelling, ones you may not necessarily have associated with Kobbie when he first came to prominence at youth level. Tenacious tackling and high pressing showcase his evolution into a more complete midfielder and we all hope he can keep this form up, starting with the game against Everton on Monday night.

He made his first Premier League start in this fixture, albeit at Goodison Park, in 2023, and let's hope he will be fully recharged after the break and able to shine at Hill Dickinson Stadium.

MOST TACKLES SINCE 17 JAN

1. Casemiro - 12
2. Kobbie Mainoo - 10
3. Matheus Cunha - 9
3. Diogo Dalot - 9
3. Luke Shaw - 9

HIGH PRESSURES APPLIED SINCE 17 JAN

1. Bruno Fernandes - 300
2. Kobbie Mainoo - 263
3. Bryan Mbeumo - 244
4. Casemiro - 232
5. Amad - 168

Stats courtesy of Opta.