Kobbie Mainoo has reportedly received plenty of interest and has not featured for Manchester United in the 2025-26 season so far.
The English youngster has struggled to break into the Red Devils’ starting XI under Ruben Amorim. He was injured when the manager arrived and has seen a few different players move ahead of him in the pecking order.
Different reports show that Man United have been willing to move on from him since the start of the year. Chelsea, as always, were one of the interested teams initially, with rumours indicating that Spanish duo Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid have recently joined the race to sign the 20 year-old. It also looks like he would prefer a move abroad over staying in England.
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However, none of these options seem to suit Mainoo as well as a reunion with the man who presented him to the footballing world.
Mainoo to Real Madrid
This is actually not a bad shout. Mainoo would learn a lot under Xabi Alonso, who was one of the best of his generation playing in the same position. And they have had a lot of fitness-related issues, which would inevitably lead to opportunities.
However, Los Blancos already have well-established options. Vice-captain Federico Valverde is a fan-favourite, versatile guaranteed starter who is likely to stay in midfield rather than fill in at right-back following Dani Carvajal’s return from injury and the signing of Trent Alexander-Arnold.
Aurelien Tchouameni provides defensive presence and stability, while Arda Guler gives them more offensive and creative firepower. Eduardo Camavinga is recovering from an injury and fellow Englishman Jude Bellingham is also currently sidelined.
The tactical fit makes a lot of sense – there’s just too much competition for a player who is unhappy for lack of playing time.
Mainoo to Atletico Madrid
Atletico Madrid have been kind of a mess since the start of the calendar year, dropping what should be easy points and not being able to get anywhere near to Barcelona’s and Real Madrid’s level.
It was a sad downfall from their club-record of 15 straight wins across all competitions from October 2024 until January 2025.
Atleti have picked up just one point from a possible six during their first two games in the 2025-26 La Liga season, allowing Espanyol to come from behind and defeat them and drawing at home to Elche.
They also couldn’t get out of the Fifa Club World Cup group stage, finishing 3rd below Brazilian side Botafogo and leaders PSG in the Group B standings.
Looking at their squad, it seems like there would be a place for Kobbie Mainoo. The Colchoneros currently have Johnny Cardoso and Pablo Barrios playing in their double-pivot. Koke and Conor Gallagher are back-up options while Rodrigo De Paul left for Inter Miami over the summer.
In the event of a transfer, Mainoo would probably compete for a spot mainly against Barrios. Johnny is a more defensive-minded midfielder and plays more like an achor.
Still, it would require a period of adaptation to a new manager with competition in sight, just like at Real Madrid. Atleti also have signed attacking midfielders who like to drop deep and initiate build-up (Thiago Almada and Alejandro Baena), occupying similar spots on the pitch as Mainoo.
Mainoo to Bayer Leverkusen
What better man to be in charge of continuing Kobbie Mainoo’s development than the one who brought him into the footballing world in the first place?
Erik Ten Hag arrived at Bayer Leverkusen just under two months ago and has already seen most of the Bundesliga winning side from 2024 go out the door.
The 55-year-old could use familiar help rebuilding the team. He gave Mainoo his professional debut in 2023 and it was under his guidance that the young midfielder showed his best self in different roles and positions.
Xabi Alonso already had a culture of rotating players around, with 15 different players starting 10+ games in the 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons for Leverkusen. All of this could make it easier for Mainoo to settle into a new system, culture and country.
In addition, their two most all-around type of centre-midfielders are both injury-prone and currently sidelined. Exequiel Palacios and new signing Malik Tillman aren’t the most reliable players in terms of fitness, which would leave opportunities for Mainoo to come in and earn a spot.
Other options include Aleix García, who is a brilliant distributor but lacks defensive presence and ball-carrying abilities, and Robert Andrich, the more defensive-minded of the bunch.
The many changes to the squad in the past few months will also ease the pressure on them to succeed and challenge for titles. At the same time, they will also compete at the highest level, with Champions League football on the horizon.
Bayer Leverkusen are reportedly out of the race to sign Mainoo for financial reasons, but Manchester United are actively letting his value drop by not playing him. Loaning him out might be a way to fix that while also not giving up on him entirely, even if that’s not what they consider ideal.