If you had not been following Jude Bellingham’s development closely since his departure from Birmingham City and since his early days at Borussia Dortmund, you might have been taken aback by the England international’s positioning during the 3-3 Champions League quarter-final draw with Manchester City on Tuesday.
Bellingham, a Manchester United target during the Ole Gunnar Solskjaer era, burst onto the scene as your classic box-to-box central midfielder.
But during his time with Real Madrid, Bellingham has operated as a number ten more often than not. Hell, he’s even played as something of a centre-forward at times. Albeit maybe more of a ‘false nine’ than a true one. With 20 goals in 33 games, Bellingham is Madrid’s top scorer in 2023/24.
Rio Ferdinand, the Man United legend, wonders if Kobbie Mainoo could be in line for a similar change of role. A player who made his debut as a deep-lying ‘number six’ against Everton back in November, Ferdinand feels, may be a little wasted in such a defensively-minded position.
Especially after Mainoo opened his Old Trafford account with a gorgeous strike from the edge of the box against Liverpool on Sunday, finding the top corner from almost exactly the same position he broke Wolves hearts in the 97 minute a few months back.
Should Manchester United change Kobbie Mainoo’s role?
“There are some moments at grounds where everyone is looking at each other saying ‘Oh my, did you see what happened there?’. (Mainoo’s goal against Liverpool) was one of those moments,” Ferdinand tells Vibe with Five.
“It was kind of out of nothing as well. The audacity for him to even take that on. His two best moments this season – in a Man United shirt – have been in the same position. That area of the box.
“So, it’s starting to lead me to think; Is he maybe better off being a little higher?”
Ferdinand accepts that, with Sunday’s other goalscorer Bruno Fernandes on the pitch, there is a balance Erik ten Hag must strike.
“The problem is, we’ve got Bruno who likes to operate in those areas. But once (Mainoo) gets into those areas, he is as cold as you like, and I want to see him in there more,” the 2008 Champions League winner adds.
“We’ve got to find a way to help that to happen.
“I didn’t think he played one of his best games for United (vs Liverpool). But, again, he had an impact. At this level, that can be enough. Kobbie, every time he plays at the moment, he does something that makes you think ‘at this age, this is not normal’.”
Three goals for the Red Devils in 2024
Mainoo now has three goals for Man United’s first team. All three were brilliant in their own right too. A spin and shot vs Liverpool, the weaving, dancing brilliance of that Wolves winner, and that curling first-timer against Newport County in the FA Cup.
“The biggest mistake you can make with a youth player is to expect these kind of things in every game,” Ferdinand argues. “But, the problem is, he is producing these kinds of things in every game.
“You scratch your head and think ‘he shouldn’t be doing this’. His composure, the way he strengths people off, ridiculous.
“I think he’s a really, really, really top talent. The temperament alone, for me, suggests he is here to stay.”