Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag has called against mounting pressure on Kobbie Mainoo after he helped the Red Devils to their 13th FA Cup title with victory over rivals Manchester City on Saturday.
The 19-year-old of Ghanaian descent scored the second goal after Alejandro Garnacho put United ahead, setting them up for a famous 2-1 win.
It was the fifth goal for Mainoo this season in all competitions and his second in the FA Cup which has continued to earn him rave reviews.
“It was really incredible to watch Kobbie [Mainoo] at his age. We wanted to bring him [through] and in the second game of the season he got an injury. It then took him so long to get back to fitness,” Ten Hag said.
“I think we have to keep it calm because here in England we do so much in pushing young players high and then hammer them when they have one or two bad performances.”
Fair play to Kobbie Mainoo man went from chilling in Manchester United’s Academy to kicking ball and scoring goals with the first team at Wembley in the FA Cup Final genuinely sound geezer as well#EmiratesFACup pic.twitter.com/kGZTRYX8kU
— Emirates FA Cup (@EmiratesFACup) May 25, 2024
Reflecting on the victory over City at Wembley, Ten Hag said: “As always the rivalry is always there and it is always much more important when you play against a team from your own city. For us it was not about this, it was about proving a point after having such a bad year with so many setbacks and all the injuries and every time we had to survive. The team showed so much resilience and I am so proud of them.
“Football is about winning trophies at the end of the day. I want to play the best football, attacking football, dynamic football. But in the end, you have to win games and trophies. That is the mentality we brought in and we had only one opportunity this season, in the FA Cup. I am very proud of the players and the staff because they did a fantastic job.”
United’s FA Cup triumph gave them a berth in next season’s UEFA Europa League alongside Tottenham Hotspur while Chelsea have dropped to the UEFA Europa Conference League.
