Nicky Butt, the former Manchester United midfielder, has encouraged Kobbie Mainoo to skip England’s upcoming World Cup third-place play-off versus France this Saturday. Mainoo earned his spot in Thomas Tuchel’s tournament squad following a strong performance for Manchester United during the latter half of the previous season under Michael Carrick.
Despite his inclusion, the 21-year-old has spent the entire tournament on the sidelines, failing to record a single minute of action across England’s seven matches. Although Tuchel is expected to rotate his squad for the Saturday night fixture, providing Mainoo a potential debut, Butt feels the player should reject the opportunity due to his previous exclusion.
Butt expressed deep skepticism regarding the situation, suggesting that something feels wrong about how the player has been handled. He stated that if he were in Mainoo’s position, he would excuse himself from the match by claiming an injury. According to Butt, the third-place game is an insignificant friendly, and it is unreasonable to risk a potential injury during a match that carries no real weight after being ignored for the duration of the tournament.
