Local hero: Kobbie Mainoo bringing cheer at troubled Manchester United

 Stockport-born midfielder has broken through into first team and could be solution to Erik ten Hag’s midfield conundrum.

GLIMMER OF LIGHT: Galatasaray's Kerem Akturkoglu (left) and Manchester United's Kobbie Mainoo battle for the ball. Pic: Nick Potts/PA Wire.

Amid all the joylessness that can come with being a modern football fan, concerned by takeovers, the cost of attending matches and the inevitability that your club is not as successful as you desire, there is one thing that will always bring cheer: a local academy graduate making an impression in the first team.

The latest such Manchester United prodigy is the Stockport-born 18-year-old Kobbie Mainoo, who at Newcastle on Saturday night will be aiming to make his second Premier League start.