Paul Scholes was gushing with praise for Kobbie Mainoo after the teenager’s man of the match display in the FA Cup final.
Mainoo played a starring role in front of England boss Gareth Southgate at Wembley to help guide Manchester United to a 2-1 win over Man City.
The 19-year-old has been the brightest light for United in a difficult campaign and fans have been likening his game to Scholes since he broke through.
But the United great was quick to give his own verdict on whether the two are comparable – giving short shrift to the idea.
‘Read a few comparisons between me and this kid last week… don’t waste your time, he is 10 times the player I was at 19,’ Scholes wrote on Instagram.
Kobbie Mainoo produced a man-of-the-match display as Man United won the FA Cup final
United icon Paul Scholes (left) delivering the ultimate compliment to Mainoo afterwards
‘Just love the way he receives the ball, the calmness, the awareness of what’s around him and of course big goals in big games.
‘This boy is special… and he’s a f***ing Red. Laters…’
Mainoo is pushing to make England’s final Euro 2024 squad and he only further enhanced his already strong case here.
Speaking after the match, the youngster was at a loss for words after his near faultless display.
‘It’s unbelievable, the fans, the game as a whole,’ he told ITV.
‘We tried to stop them playing through the middle, they are so dangerous.
‘They have so much quality. We tried to send them wide and block from there, defend with our lives.
On his goal he said: ‘I can’t even remember it as it was such an amazing moment!
Mainoo is only 19 but is a star already in this Man United team having broken in this season
His goal made it 2-0 and it was such a blur Mainoo joked afterwards he can barely remember it
‘I just made the run and slotted it into the corner. The quality Bruno [Fernandes] has, he sees things that no-one else can.
‘It’s been a tough season and the fans have been with us the whole way but in a game like this, we had to come together. This game was the light at the end of the tunnel, we had to come together.’
On his meteoric rise, he added: ‘It’s been amazing. I can’t think of England too much as I want to take all this in but I’m living in the moment.’
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