At 19, Mainoo stood out as one of the few bright spots under the Dutch manager, racking up 32 appearances for the club last season, which earned him a spot on the England national team.
Mainoo went on to play a significant role as England reached the Euro 2024 final, though they narrowly lost 2-1 to Spain. ..Continue Reading
Despite that loss, the midfielder could look back with pride, having scored in the FA Cup final to help Manchester United secure a 2-1 victory over Manchester City.
This FA Cup win seemed to temporarily secure Ten Hag’s position, despite United only finishing eighth in the Premier League.
United also came last in their Champions League group, which would have ruled them out of European competitions had it not been for their triumph at Wembley.
However, Ten Hag consistently defended the season’s outcome, emphasizing the importance of their trophies.
With an earlier League Cup victory in his first season, the former Ajax coach frequently reminded critics that only City had won more trophies during his two-year tenure in England.
Despite Ten Hag’s defense, INEOS dismissed him last month following continued underperformance, replacing him with Ruben Amorim from Sporting CP.
Now, Mainoo has responded, seemingly challenging his former manager’s perspective on the season.
“We couldn’t go into the summer with nothing, just finishing where we finished in the table,” he told GQ, when asked about the FA Cup win. “A trophy brings hope. But it definitely didn’t make the season a success.”
The academy graduate added that United “needed” the victory over Pep Guardiola’s side. And he said their status as rank outsiders made them determined to prove their worth at Wembley.
“I remember just the feeling around it was like, no one expects us to win,” he recalled. “They’ve just written us off. I used that as motivation. I won’t say it made the season a success for us as a team, but we definitely needed it.”
Mainoo hasn’t yet reached the form of his debut season, as injuries have held him back. He’s been sidelined since October 6, when he was forced off late in the game against Aston Villa with a muscle injury.
However, the English midfielder could be ready to play in Amorim’s first game as manager—a Premier League match against Ipswich Town on November 24.
This week, he and his teammates were seen meeting their new Portuguese manager for the first time.
