Wes Brown urges Man Utd star to confront Ruben Amorim over 'frustrating' problem

Amorim is reluctant to use Mainoo (Picture: Getty Images)

Kobbie Mainoo may have to confront Ruben Amorim to find out exactly why he is not getting minutes this season, according to former Manchester United defender Wes Brown.

Mainoo, 20, has not started any of United’s seven Premier League matches with his only starting role coming against Grimsby Town in the Carabao Cup .

The midfielder has racked up just 112 minutes of playing time off the bench having been told by the manager he is in direct competition with Bruno Fernandes for one of Amorim’s two midfield roles.

Mainoo attempted to leave United on loan before the summer transfer window closed, eager to ensure he is in the running for a place in Thomas Tuchel’s squad when England fly out for the World Cup next summer.

A loan move will surely be revisited should the situation not change before January. But in the meantime, Brown believes Mainoo will feel he is owed some answers.

‘Kobbie will want to play,’ Brown told Metro courtesy of FreeBets.com, the home of the best betting sites.

‘There is something going on where he is not getting starts, not getting game time. But Kobbie is a very talented young player and he needs to play football at his age. And internationally as well. So he will be very disappointed with how the season has gone.

Mainoo has not started a league game all season (Picture: Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA

‘I just hope the manager and him are speaking, in a sense of [finding out] what the manager wants from him and what he needs more of because Kobbie is a young talented guy and needs to be playing more and hopefully that an happen.

‘He will be probably be thinking “I don’t know what is next.” There is a World Cup coming up in the summer and he will want to be part of that but he will need to play football. It will be a tough one and I’m not sure what happens from here, the only thing I can say, does he speaks to the manager to get more information [on] what he wants from him? That’s probably the surprise of this season for everyone that he has not managed to get a start.’

‘It will be frustrating for him. Very frustrating, He will believe he should be on the pitch for longer but this will happen in every team. I think it is how you handle it, how you get on with it to make sure the manager notices that as well.’

Mainoo will look to leave again in January (Picture: Getty Images)

To add to Mainoo’s frustrations, Amorim has seldom looked to him first when making changes. As United chased an equaliser on the opening day of the season against Arsenal, Manuel Ugarte came on ahead of him with Amorim again turning to the Uruguay international the following week against Fulham.

It was only after losing Matheus Cunha and Mason Mount to injury against Burnley did Mainoo finally get some Premier League minutes at the end of August.

Danny Simpson, another graduate of the United academy, believes it is a worrying pattern and believes the situation will only have one outcome with the England star leaving Old Trafford in January.

Two former academy graduates in Brown and Simpson have concerns (Picture: Getty)

‘Amorim seems pretty set on Bruno and Casemiro as the main two at the moment, but it looks like Ugarte is the next player to come on,’ Simpson told Metro via MyBettingSites.com .

‘There have been times where I think Kobbie’s played better than Ugarte when they’ve both been on the pitch but he’s still not getting those chances over him.

‘That must be frustrating when you’re not just the next sub, you’re the next sub after that sub. One of them never gets subbed by the way, which is Bruno, so you’re looking and thinking, “I’m not going to get on unless there are injuries” and you don’t want to wish injury on any of your teammates.