Kobbie Mainoo is set to miss Manchester United's clash with Tottenham on Saturday due to a minor injury, according to The Athletic.
The 20-year-old had hoped to feature during the match on Saturday lunchtime but will now miss out on the contest as a result of a knock.
Described as 'elite' by Red Devils under-21 coach Travis Binnion, the midfielder's absence could spell bad news for a long-running club record.
A post on X from The Athletic said: "Kobbie Mainoo will miss Manchester United’s match at Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday with a minor injury and, while that in itself is disappointing for a player eager for more minutes, it does also raise the prospect of wider-reaching deflation.
"United have, since 1937, for 4,332 successive games, included an academy graduate in their first-team squad. Inevitably conscious of the threat to a historic record, the club have included Jack Fletcher, 18, in the travelling party for the trip."
Kobbie Mainoo Set To Miss Tottenham Clash
Mainoo's absence is a blow for Man United, but mainly because of the desire to maintain a unique piece of football history.
Discussing the 4332-game record, Ruben Amorim explained: “We want to maintain that, I don’t want to be the guy to break that record, or that idea,” Amorim said in September. “If you see the past of Manchester United, it’s built on kids who grow up here for a long time. I think that should be our goal in the future, so I should try maintain that, that is for sure.”
As for Mainoo, this is just the latest in a series of blows in his young Man United career.
Once tipped as the future of the Red Devils' midfield, the 20-year-old has fallen way down the pecking order at Old Trafford having started just one game so far this term, an EFL Cup clash with Grimsby Town.