Michael Carrick hails ‘quality’ Kobbie Mainoo as Man Utd midfielder impresses after being ignored by Ruben Amorim

Before Amorim's sacking at United in early January, Mainoo struggled for game time at the Premier League giants. The Portuguese didn't want Mainoo to leave United but he did make it clear he was not at the top of his midfield pecking order. Conversely, the ex-Sporting CP manager also said the United academy product was the "future" of the club.

But when Carrick was sworn in as his temporary successor, he started Mainoo straight away as United beat rivals Manchester City 2-0 last weekend. And he has continued to wax lyrical about the England ace.

On Friday, former United player Carrick revealed he has known Mainoo for more than five years now and has seen him grow into an exciting talent. He said it is important that academy products like Mainoo continue to graduate to the first team, while praising his individual quality.

He told reporters: "I really enjoyed working with Kobbie. I have known him since he was young. I started working with him when he was 13, 14 years old when I was going through my badges. This club needs young players coming through and laying the foundation for understanding what it means, not only for the players or the squad, but for the club and the supporters. It is something we need to grasp and build on and Kobbie is a prime example. To come through so quickly and have that rapid rise, he had to play in some awfully big games and had to impact those it shows an awful lot of quality in terms of his character and being able to handle it. Part of a career is having a few ups and downs and sometimes it goes in different trajectories but we saw last week what he can bring. It was great. He is quite straight faced, he doesn't give you an awful lot but you can see in the way he played and expressed himself, he was enjoying himself and to see him like that was great."

After convincingly beating City last weekend, they face an even bigger test this Sunday away at Premier League leaders Arsenal. Carrick knows his players will face a stern examination from the Gunners but he was chomping at the bit to get stuck into Mikel Arteta's men.

He added: "I am looking forward to the game. It's a big challenge. They are a very good team. It is pretty obvious to say that, they have so many strong points to their game. It is a big challenge. They are where they are for a reason in the Champions League, we are fully aware of that and not taking that lightly at all. We feel we are in a good place and we go there looking forward to the game. It is where we want to be, we want to be positive with that energy and enthusiasm but we know it is not going to be easy."

United, who sit fifth in the Premier League, take on Arsenal on Sunday afternoon, before kickstarting February with a home clash against mid-table Fulham. If the Red Devils can get some positive results from these two games, they could be in the top four very soon.

The former Middlesbrough manager added: "We have got our ideas on what needs to be done and how we need to get there. Credit to Arsenal, they are in a really strong place for building a squad and recruitment. Mikel takes credit for that, he has done a fantastic job. We have our own ideas on what we need to do and what it is going to take get there and that is what we are working towards."