Manchester United midfielder Kobbie Mainoo is yet to make an appearance at World Cup 2026 and stands out as the only England midfielder not to have played a single minute.
Mainoo revived his season in the Premier League after the hiring of Michael Carrick as United’s interim head coach, an appointment since made permanent. The 21-year-old had experienced stagnation under Ruben Amorim but played his way back into the England picture.
Despite having 14 senior caps to his name and being a central midfield specialist, Mainoo has not been deployed as a fix for any of the multitude of midfield puzzles faced by England boss Thomas Tuchel in the United States and Mexico this summer.
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Tuchel has overlooked Mainoo at the World Cup
England have an established first-choice midfield pairing in the form of Declan Rice and Elliot Anderson but Tuchel has had to use his squad in an extended tournament, in which England have reached the semi-finals and will therefore play eight games in total, and because of Rice’s illness.
The Arsenal midfielder had to be substituted at half time during England’s quarter-final win over Norway and was replaced by clubmate Eberechi Eze. When Anthony Gordon was withdrawn after 71 minutes, Reece James came on to slot into the midfield, rather than Mainoo, with Eze moving out wide.
Jude Bellingham has joined the ranks of players who’ve appeared in the middle for England at the World Cup as Mainoo looks on from the bench.
36-year-old Jordan Henderson played a handful of minutes as a substitute against Panama at the end of the group stage. Even risking Rice himself against Norway was an indication that Mainoo isn’t seen as a viable option.
Exacerbated by the idea that England might have benefited from having another right-back in the squad – Trent Alexander-Arnold is the most frequently cited candidate but has also played in midfield for the Three Lions, albeit without success – Mainoo’s inclusion with no apparent prospect of playing has been criticised.
Nevertheless, former United and England midfielder Paul Scholes doesn’t want Mainoo’s fortunes to change as Rice races to be available for the semi-final against Argentina on Wednesday.
“It seems like it’s anybody but Kobbie Mainoo for Thomas Tuchel,” Scholes said on The Good, The Bad & The Football.
“Only Tuchel will know why. I can’t imagine Kobbie being a problem in the camp. Every manager has their favourites.
“I actually hope Kobbie Mainoo doesn’t come on now because he’s probably so down, he’s not played and he’s not kicked a football in a real game. He’s been training, obviously, but if he goes in now the only thing he can do is bad.”
For all the discussion about Mainoo’s World Cup role, England are still standing and have an opportunity to reach the final on foreign soil for the first time in their 76-year history with the competition.
In that sense, it’s certainly true that Tuchel is thus far meeting his brief and could yet achieve his objective in delivering a second World Cup for England. Mainoo’s lack of involvement is neither here nor there.
It is a curious situation, however. Tuchel hasn’t inherited a player he doesn’t rate or wouldn’t have chosen. The England manager alone is responsible for selecting the World Cup squad and brought Mainoo back into the fold.
