19 year old England star would slot into Enzo Maresca’s team right away | OneFootball

The continued standoff at Old Trafford between Manchester United and their star boy midfielder Kobbie Mainoo is increasing Chelsea’s chances of sneaking in and poaching the 19 year old.

CaughtOffside today report that the midfielder has been in “prolonged discussions” with the club about a new deal after breaking into the side last season. Part of the reason for the step up in urgency is Chelsea’s growing pressure.

The young Red Devils star would be a dream signing for our sporting directors – still a teenager, full of potential and talent and without a crazy transfer fee, given he will have just one year left on his current deal come the summer.

Given we’re still a body short in central midfield thanks to Romeo Lavia’s endless injury issues, this could be a great move football wise too. Mainoo is not the finished article, but he’s got a lot of senior appearances already and would happily slot in to the side for Premier League games.

Chelsea signing not as impossible as it looks at first

Kobbie Mainoo of Manchester United (Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)

Of course, it feels impossible that Chelsea would actually be able to persuade the youngster to leave his boyhood club and sign for us. It seems impossible that United would let him walk away like that, and not just offer him the money he wants to keep him around.

It would be a colossal failure, both in PR terms and in footballing terms, to let a brilliant academy talent go, just as he’s breaking into the England team and looking like a star of the future.

However – we’ve seen it happen at Chelsea, and it’s not as impossible as it sounds. United are into a new era of austerity and wallet watching, and while unlikely, this is certainly still possible.