England repeated their fate of Euros 2021 as they lost to Spain in the finals 2-1, courtesy of goals from Mikel Oyarzabal and Nico Williams.
It was a tournament where England were functional more than fashionable but one Manchester United player still stood out from the pack.
England Number 26 Kobbie Mainoo shattered all expectations as he went into the tournament as a fringe player and left with the status of an undroppable.
After the heart-breaking finals loss, he has now spoken for the first time on that fateful final loss. With a lot of time on his side, he also sent a four-word message to the football world which sums up his personality.
Kobbie Mainoo reacts to Euros final heartbreak
Almost 24 hours after the final kicked off in Germany, Mainoo spoke for the first time to reflect on the tournament as a whole.
He wrote: “Devastated to fall short but proud and grateful to compete in my first major international tournament for my country. We will be back.”
The “We will be back” is a strong message to the footballing world which sums up his driven and ambitious personality, something United fans already know about.
Right on cue, United players reacted to the emotional message with responses of support, and Amad spoke for every United fan when he said: “We love you brosky”, with three heart emojis.
Other players who have been at United and played with him also reacted, with Toby Collyer, a contender to become this season’s Kobbie Mainoo, replying with two heart emojis.
Rhy Bennett did the same while another United wonderkid Amir Ibragimov said, “Only the start bro”.
Mainoo’s star turn at Euros
Kobbie Mainoo’s meteoric rise in the world of football has been cemented by his performances at the Euros.
Until then, he was United’s best-kept secret but the FA Cup final had put him on the map. This tournament has launched him off the scale and the noise around the player reached a fever pitch.
The way he rose to the occasion as the challenges kept getting tougher was unbelievable at times, as this was a player who was turning out for the United U18 side as early as the start of last season.
The challenge now will be to ride this wave of momentum and not let up, since he will be a marked man now as opponents are well aware of his quality. The surprise factor of a youngster breaking through is gone.
Mainoo, for one, has always seemed like a serene individual who focuses on doing the job at hand in the best way possible, something United will hope is the case when he returns.