England may fast-track Man Utd's Kobe Mainoo to senior team: report

England may fast-track Manchester United's rising star midfielder, Kobbie Mainoo, to the senior team, according to ESPN on Tuesday.

Mainoo, 18, was born to parents from Ghana, but he played for England at the under-17, U18, and U19 levels. He can choose to represent either side at the senior level. The Ghana Football Association previously said that they would try to convince the youngster to play for their side in international competitions.

Mainoo has made 17 appearances for United this season, scoring two goals and providing two assists. He got the game-winning goal in their 4-3 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers on February 1.

England manager Gareth Southgate will have a conversation with his U21 counterpart, Lee Carsley, in the coming weeks before naming the senior squad on March 14, the report added. In order to make Mainoo ineligible for Ghana, the "Three Lions" must have him play a competitive senior international for them.

However, England have only four friendlies scheduled before the UEFA European Championship, which will begin in Germany in June. Southgate can recruit Mainoo for the senior team by allowing him to skip the U20s and the U21s, but there are difficulties for him to overcome with this solution as well.

First, a team can only take a 23-player roster to Euro 2024 instead of a 26-man squad for the previous FIFA World Cup and Euros. England are already looking at a crowded midfield that includes Declan Rice, Jude Bellingham, Jordan Henderson, Kalvin Phillips and Conor Gallagher. These are all big names in Europe and have been playing key roles in their clubs. It won't be easy to cut the playing time of any of them to make room for Mainoo.

England are in Group C with Denmark, Serbia and Slovenia at Euro 2024. The Three Lions have never been European champions before. Their best record in the tournament was finishing as the runners-up in the last edition in 2021.