Kobbie Mainoo dig at Amorim as Man Utd fans' favourite comes on in 4-goal thriller

Kobbie Mainoo’s half-brother wore a telling ‘Free Kobbie Mainoo’ t-shirt to Manchester United’s chaotic 4-4 draw with Bournemouth.

The 20-year-old’s lack of game time has been a major talking point this season, with the homegrown star still waiting to make his first Premier League start of the campaign.

Popular Mainoo received a hero’s welcome when introduced off the bench as a second-half substitute in Monday’s roller-coaster clash with Bournemouth at Old Trafford.

But one of the main talking points afterwards was the midfielder’s half-brother Jordan Mainoo-Hames posting an Instagram story of himself in the ground wearing a ‘Free Kobbie Mainoo’ top.

England international Mainoo saw a request to leave on loan rejected in August and speculation continues over a potential January switch.

United boss Ruben Amorim was not asked about the t-shirt in the post-match press conference but spoke about Mainoo at length in the build-up to the Bournemouth game.

Asked if he would sanction a January loan move if the midfielder came to see him, the manager said: “First of all, I say the same thing: the team comes first.

“If Kobbie comes to me and talks to me, I will talk to him. I’m not going to say what I’m going to say to Kobbie, but I will be really pleased if Kobbie is coming to talk to me about that.

“I just want my players happy, and I understand that every individual has their goals. The frustration doesn’t help anybody but, again, the focus is in this game and we will see if that happens.”

The Mainoo t-shirt was not the only United-related social media post of note on Monday after a pair of teenagers seemingly reacted to Amorim’s pre-match press conference.

The Portuguese said in one answer that “(Harry) Amass is now struggling in Championship” and “Chido (Obi) is not always a starter in under 21”.

Amass is on loan at embattled Championship outfit Sheffield Wednesday and posted a photo of himself holding the club’s player of the month award for November with a grinning emoji.

Obi also posted an Instagram story, which showed him with arms out celebrating a goal for the Under-21s against Manchester City in August.

The 18-year-olds subsequently deleted the posts.