Manchester United academy director sends important reminder to Kobbie Mainoo after 'landmark moment'

Manchester United's director of academy has congratulated Kobbie Mainoo on his England debut but warned him and supporters that there is still a lot of work to be done yet.

Mainoo was one of two United youngsters to make their international debut last week, along with U18 ace James Scanlon who featured for Gibraltar in their Nations League defeat to Lithuania. It has been another proud season for United's illustrious academy, which has seen 249 graduates go on to represent the first-team in total.

Mainoo is the latest poster boy for the incredible pipeline of youth talent United have produced and while they are hugely proud of his progress, Nick Cox is keen to ensure he remains grounded amid all of the hype.

“This is a huge landmark in the development of both players that should be celebrated,” Cox told club media of Mainoo and Scanlon.

“We always encourage young players to dream big, knowing that the bigger the dream, the harder they will have to work to fulfil it.

“These two young players – and many others in the first-team squad here and elsewhere – have achieved the biggest of dreams, to represent their country. There is no greater achievement than playing for your nation.

“All the staff at the academy are very proud of what these boys are achieving. As we always tell our kids and their parents, it's our duty to facilitate them maximising their potential, whether that’s playing for England or finding success elsewhere in the game or in life.

“For Kobbie, this is clearly another landmark moment in a season with many of them. I’d remind him and the United fans who are rightly excited about his talent that it’s still early days in his career.

“Kobbie’s in a great place at the moment, ready for the hard work ahead. There may be some setbacks on the way to reaching his full potential. He’ll know that and we hope we’ve prepared him well to ride those hurdles and continue fulfilling his dreams.”