Mainoo watches from the bench as Tuchel picks Henderson over him against Panama

Kobbie Mainoo has yet to play a single minute at the 2026 World Cup after Thomas Tuchel again overlooked the Manchester United midfielder in England’s final Group Stage match against Panama, introducing Jordan Henderson as a late substitute in his place.

Mainoo is one of three outfield players in England’s squad — alongside Trevoh Chalobah and Ivan Toney — who have not featured at all in the tournament. The decision to bring on Henderson, 36, ahead of Mainoo raised eyebrows given the contrast in form the two players showed in the Premier League last season.

The Stockport-born midfielder had to fight his way back into contention after a difficult first half of the club season at United, where he did not start a Premier League match until Ruben Amorim was sacked in January. Incoming manager Michael Carrick immediately restored him to the starting XI, and Mainoo’s sparkling form in the second half of the campaign was enough to earn him a late call-up to Tuchel’s World Cup squad.

Mainoo acknowledged the turbulence of his season ahead of the tournament. “There were difficult times,” he told England reporters in the United States. “But I tried to keep my focus on what was in front of me, take things day by day and just keep working my craft, keep working hard for the team, and I hoped the rest would come. Thankfully it has.”

He was also candid about the debt he owes Carrick for reviving his international prospects. “Definitely, and I told him that I was very grateful,” Mainoo said. “Because if he hadn’t put me on the pitch, then I wouldn’t have been here so, I’m always grateful to him for that.”

Henderson, who rejoined the Premier League with Brentford last year after spells at Ajax and Al-Ettifaq, was a contentious squad selection from the outset. Tuchel has cited the veteran’s leadership and his close relationship with Jude Bellingham as factors in his inclusion.

Tuchel had publicly suggested Mainoo would have a role to play when he spoke at his first press conference of the tournament. “We have Kobbie, who is still young and has won his titles,” the England head coach said, grouping him among a “huge chunk of youthfulness” in the squad. Yet while fellow young midfielder Nico O’Reilly has started twice and come off the bench in a third game, Mainoo has not left the dugout.