KOBBIE DAZZLER

Mainoo's teen dream becomes reality in his breakthrough season

- DAVID MCDONNELL

IT turns out Kobbie Mainoo is as cool and calm off the pitch as he is on it.

In just six months Mainoo has gone from relative unknown to Manchester United regular and a member of Gareth Southgate’s England squad for Euro 2024.

Sidelined at the start of the season with an injury, which kept him out for four months, Mainoo only played his first game of the season in late November, but has enjoyed a remarkable rise.

“Back then I wasn’t even thinking about England,” said Mainoo, speaking at United’s training complex ahead of today’s FA Cup final.

“I was just thinking about getting fit and getting back in the squad, not even the starting lineup. So to be here now, I wouldn’t have dreamed it.”

But the 19-year-old is not fazed by his new high-profile status, even though it means he can no longer pop to the local shop without requests for selfies and autographs.

“A lot more people know my name now,” said Mainoo, who was born in Stockport, like Manchester City rival and England team-mate Phil Foden.

“But at home with the family I have around me, they very much keep me grounded and nothing changes at home.