RUBEN AMORIM told Kobbie Mainoo to forget about a January move because he is “the future” of Manchester United.
The England midfielder, 20, wants to force a loan move away from Old Trafford next month owing to a lack of game time.
Injury is set to rule Mainoo out of Boxing Day’s Prem clash with Newcastle — but he should get a chance to fill in for crocked Bruno Fernandes, who is out for up to four weeks.
Red Devils boss Amorim said: “He’s going to be the future of Manchester United, that is my feeling.
“He just needs to wait for his chance. Everything can change in football in two days.”
Mainoo is yet to start a league game this season — playing just 212 minutes.
And his brother Jordan wore a “Free Kobbie Mainoo” t-shirt at Old Trafford during the 4-4 draw with Bournemouth last week.
Amorim previously suggested he saw Mainoo as only able to play in Fernandes’ central midfield role.
And skipper Fernandes now faces up to a month out — having missed just three games through injury or illness in six seasons.
But Amorim now admits that Mainoo CAN play in positions other than Fernandes’ midfield playmaker role.
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He said: “Kobbie Mainoo will have the opportunity he has all the time.
“He played in different positions and we talk about the position of Casemiro — he can do that position.
“If we play with three, he can play like we played in the last game, the position of Mason Mount.”
Academy graduate Mainoo also wanted to leave in the summer for Napoli in a bid to regain his Three Lions place but United refused to sell.
Mainoo has started only 17 of the 60 games that Amorim has been in charge but should now get a run in the team.
Amorim made it clear that Mainoo would have started against Newcastle on Friday had it not been for his calf injury.
He explained: “We were talking about how Kobbie doesn’t have the minutes that he deserves or needs.
“And then you have the opportunity and Kobbie is not there. So sometimes it’s bad luck.”
Apart from Fernandes, Amorim is also without injured Harry Maguire and Matthijs de Ligt while Noussair Mazraoui, Amad Diallo and Bryan Mbeumo are at the Africa Cup of Nations.
Fernandes has also left a cloud hanging over his future by revealing he felt United chiefs wanted him to leave in the summer amid Saudi interest.
Amorim has not plans to let Mainoo go in January.
He said: “If we are not getting someone, it is hard to leave. We are shorter.
“We are a club with a big responsibility.
“Everybody said we need to win every game, so it’s going to be hard for someone to leave the club if we don’t get a substitution.
“If we can bring someone, good. If not, we’ll spend money in the summer, I think — and this season we can do so much more with this team.”
Amorim’s reluctance to let players leave could impact forward Joshua Zirkzee, who has attracted interest from Roma.
