Sir Jim Ratcliffe planning to ‘quadruple’ one Man Utd player’s wages after FA Cup win

Manchester United are reportedly set to increase midfielder Kobbie Mainoo’s wages fourfold with an improved contract following the club’s FA Cup final victory.

Erik ten Hag’s side delivered an outstanding performance to defeat reigning champions Manchester City 2-1 in the final at Wembley earlier this month.

Mainoo, who turned 19 earlier this year, scored the second goal in the first half, completing an excellent team move with a right-footed first-time finish into the bottom right corner. He is among the players who have benefited from the opportunities given to youth players by Ten Hag, with fellow academy graduate Alejandro Garnacho scoring the first goal at Wembley. Mainoo has also been named in England’s provisional 33-man Euro 2024 squad, with expectations that he will be in contention to start the opening group game against Serbia on June 16.

According to the Daily Star, Mainoo has agreed in principle to a new £80,000 per week contract at Old Trafford, quadrupling his current wages. The offer is reportedly a reward for his ‘fine form’ this season, with United executives also keen to fend off interest from other clubs. His current deal has three years remaining.

However, it is claimed that Mainoo will not sign the contract yet, as he wants to fully focus on Euro 2024 with England this summer. With the tournament ending on July 14, it may be some time before the contract is finalized, but United fans can be reassured that one of their top young talents appears set to stay at the club for the long term.

Speaking about Mainoo’s impact on United’s season after the FA Cup final, Ten Hag told BBC Sport: “It was really incredible to watch Kobbie at his age. We wanted to bring him [through to the first team in the summer], but in the second game of the pre-season he got an injury. It then took him so long to get back to fitness. I think we have to keep it calm because here in England, we do so much in pushing young players high and then hammer them when they have one or two bad performances.”