Leny Yoro reveals talks with Kobbie Mainoo before he decided to join Manchester United

Leny Yoro has explained the significance of his relationship with Kobbie Mainoo after singling out the midfielder as his closest friend at Manchester United.

After arriving at Manchester United over a year ago, Leny Yoro has made 43 appearances and established a place in Ruben Amorim’s preferred back-three, along with Matthijs de Ligt and Luke Shaw.

The 19-year-old French defender missed the start of the 2024/25 campaign due to injury, but once he returned to fitness, it wasn’t long before United fans could see his potential.

United now have one of the most exciting young defenders in Europe and it feels like the sky is the limit for Yoro, who has been trusted as a regular starter under Amorim.

It helps that Yoro was able to settle quickly after striking a bond with one of his United teammates before arriving at Old Trafford.

Leny Yoro credits Kobbie Mainoo for helping him settle at Man Utd

A quick glance at social media accounts belonging to United players can give you an idea of which players are close friends.

That was certainly the case for Yoro and Kobbie Mainoo over the summer as pictures appeared of the pair enjoying the off-season together.

Yoro has revealed that he had a conversation with Mainoo before arriving at United, and now they spend plenty of time together.

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Furthermore, Yoro explains how important it is to be close with his teammates.

“Before I arrived at the club, I spoke with him also because we had some guys in common,” Yoro told The National.

“When I came here, he was someone that I was with every time. We are the same age.

“When you have someone like this in your team, it’s important to have a good relation. He’s a top guy. We spend the holiday together. It’s important for us to have this type of relation.”

While Yoro is playing regular football at United, it’s been a completely different story for Mainoo, who has lost his place in the team under Amorim.

Amorim admits Mainoo ‘deserves’ more game time, but the lack of midweek games is making it difficult for the United head coach to give minutes to fringe players.

Who else is Leny Yoro close to at Man Utd?

Mainoo isn’t the only player Yoro has struck a friendship with since joining United.

The young defender stresses that he has a good relationship with everyone at Old Trafford, but he spends most of his time with Mainoo as well as Amad.

“I have a good relation with everyone, but I stay more with Kobbie, also Amad, he speaks French also,” he added.

“Mbeumo, Patrick Dorgu, Ayden, the young guys. We stay a lot together, but everyone has a good relation. I have a good relation with Cunha, Shaw, Bruno, everyone.

“The thing that’s good is that there is no group of friends in the team. This is just one group of friends.”

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