Gareth Southgate shares what he said to Kobbie Mainoo as he walked off the pitch at full-time after England vs Belgium

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Gareth Southgate has now been sharing what he said to young Manchester United star Kobbie Mainoo following his full England debut.

It turned out to be the perfect international break for Mainoo, who returns to Carrington having won two caps and a man of the match award on his first start. 

The 18-year-old played alongside Declan Rice in the middle, both pitched slightly behind Jude Bellingham in the number 10 role.

Perhaps fans would now like that to be England’s midfield three for this summer’s Euros, delineating how far Mainoo’s reputation has come in the space of a week.

Of course, Mainoo’s stats from last night’s 2-2 draw against Belgium do prove exactly why he’s in that bracket already.

According to Sofascore, in his 75 minutes the Man United man had a 89% pass success rate, played two key passes and also enjoyed 65 touches.

He was influential in the middle, and really passed the eye test too.

That being said, England manager Gareth Southgate has now shared what he told Mainoo as he was coming off of the pitch at full-time last night.

Gareth Southgate delighted with how Kobbie Mainoo has started in an England shirt

Speaking to beIN SPORTS, Southgate said he praised Mainoo for being able to seamlessly reproduce his club form in an England shirt.

He explained: “Just that he has had a fabulous week with us and everything that we have seen with this club he reproduced in an England shirt, which isn’t always the case. 

“Very calm, he receives the ball well under pressure, he’s strong. We are a little bit more open playing that way but the benefits with the ball were clear to see.”

Of course, after just one start and one squad involvement, the Manchester United youngster now looks a shoe-in for the Euros squad this summer.

Mainoo has definitely taken his opportunity with the likes of Jordan Henderson and Kalvin Phillips struggling to justify their inclusion these days.

Perhaps the challenge will now be for Mainoo to head back to Erik ten Hag’s side and quietly continue this form, keeping his feet on the ground.

But with the ability and temperament he’s shown, that certainly shouldn’t be an issue.

All that being said, it seems as if Man United have found their ideal candidate to replace Ten Hag in the summer.