Rio Ferdinand has urged Kobbie Mainoo to take inspiration from Casemiro as he looks to revive his prospects at Manchester United. Ferdinand argued that the Brazil international\u2019s return to the starting line-up under Ruben Amorim offers a blueprint for a young player pushed to the periphery.<\/p>\n
Casemiro is now among the first names on the team sheet in Ruben Amorim\u2019s resurgent side, perhaps at Mainoo\u2019s expense. The 20-year-old academy graduate has struggled for minutes under the Portuguese boss and has not started in the Premier League this season. A request to leave on loan in the summer was rejected, leaving Mainoo forced to accept short cameos late on in games while his dreams of travelling to the 2026 World Cup with England appear to fade.<\/p>\n
Ferdinand was clear that he did not want to see Mainoo abandon his United career and highlighted the example set by Casemiro. “Watch and learn,” he said on YouTube. “There was a player being told he\u2019s not good enough for Manchester United, exactly what Mainoo\u2019s been through. I think character-wise, personality-wise, there\u2019s a lot to learn from Casemiro.<\/p>\n
“Yes there\u2019s football-wise too but they are very different players.”<\/p>\n
He also pointed to the value of fighting for a place at the club and criticised the attitude of some academy graduates. “[Casemiro\u2019s fight] is what I think a lot of fans would have wanted from Rashford, from [Jadon] Sancho from Antony, those guys have gone elsewhere now,” Ferdinand said. “Especially Rashford because he\u2019s homegrown. Just stay and fight, be here and fight for it, be a Man Utd player, hold on, grit your teeth and hold on by your fingernails. But sometimes it\u2019s just not the way.”<\/p>\n
On Mainoo\u2019s immediate chances, Ferdinand acknowledged the competition he faces. “You\u2019ve got Casemiro, a man in form and Bruno [Fernandes], the most exciting player we\u2019ve got, it\u2019s going to be hard for Kobbie to get in here right now,” he acknowledged. The message was straightforward: learn from Casemiro and keep fighting for minutes at Old Trafford.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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