Manchester United midfielder Kobbie Mainoo has been called into Gareth Southgate’s England squad, the Football Association confirmed on Tuesday.
Having originally been named in the England under-21 side, Southgate has now promoted Mainoo into the senior side, meaning he could make his first team debut in upcoming friendly games at Wembley against Brazil on Saturday and Belgium three days later.
Mainoo has impressed for United this year with two goals and two assists in 21 games across all competitions, and has become a regular feature in Erik Ten Hag’s team.
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The 18-year-old has represented England at U17s, U18s and U19s level but is eligible to switch his allegiance to Ghana, where his parents were born.
The youngster still spends some of his spare time back in Ghana and the country’s football association confirmed in February they were keen on convincing Mainoo to represent them at international level.
However, sources told ESPN in February that Southgate believes Mainoo has significant potential and is keen to accelerate his progress with England.
Information from ESPN’s James Olley contributed to this report.