The same conversation with Kobbie Mainoo's father was had every Sunday morning at Cheadle Hulme High School in Stockport.
Mainoo was just five years old, but the coach who was responsible for organising Cheadle and Gatley FC's academy, which was created to introduce young children to football, already knew he needed a bigger challenge to 'push him' further.
"In terms of my time with Kobbie at Cheadle and Gatley, he was definitely a standout player by a mile at that young age," Steve Vare, who remains involved on the committee of grassroots Stockport club, told the Manchester Evening News.
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"It was all a bit too easy and I was trying to make it more difficult to test him. His dad asked whether he would be pushed up into some of the teams, a couple of ages ahead of himself, but at the time we were already fully subscribed."
Mainoo stood out during those early days training at Cheadle Hulme High School and it wasn't difficult for Vare to recognise he might have something special, as he was doing things with a football that weren't normal for a child of that age.
More than a decade on from those introductory sessions, Mainoo won the FA Youth Cup with Manchester United's Under-18s and that success was followed, just eight months later, by Erik ten Hag handing him a first-team debut.
The 17-year-old has long been considered the shining light in his age group in the academy and it's understood his attitude, application and eagerness to learn and improve have impressed youth staff, who enjoy working with him.
Mainoo is not just an exceptional prospect but he's a likeable young man. Club sources have indicated he's a very calm character, who takes everything in his stride and it's been suggested staff would be surprised if he got ahead of himself.
He's been moulded by his parents and he's keeping his feet on the ground after making his first-team debut. Mainoo's family background is Ghanaian and he regularly visits the country.
Vare, who coached Mainoo between the ages of five and six, was one of the first coaches to spot his talent, although his ability was hardly a secret for the parents who would stand on the sidelines to watch their children at Cheadle and Gatley's academy.
"Lots of players came in but the idea was the academy was getting them ready for the Under-7s, which was when the team structure started," Vare explained. "Kobbie never ever got into the team set-up because it wasn't challenging enough for him.
"Kobbie, from a very early age, was pushed from the reception pitch into year one because he was too good. My thinking was, I’d try to organise the teams so the better players were against Kobbie, so he wasn't on a team that would dominate the games.
"You’d end up pushing him against better players and I'd add rules like, you can only score with your left foot or I wouldn’t let him score, so he'd have to pass to a teammate. Things like that were important to keep challenging and testing him.
"Even at that young age, he was nippy, strong and very good. His biggest quality was his dribbling, but his strength was also good and he was quick, very hard to knock off the ball even at five and six, whereas for some kids it’s quite easy.
"Some children would fall on the floor but Kobbie didn’t. Once he was on the ball, it was really hard to get him off it and he would sort of dribble from one end to the other on the five-a-side pitch and score - it was all quite straightforward for him."
Mainoo was known to be 'lovely quiet lad', who would express himself on the pitch. "He wasn’t one of these young lads that might be a little arrogant, he was very quiet and he'd let his football do the talking, a really good player," Vare added.
"He’d arrive wearing his Cheadle and Gatley academy top and he would love coming to the sessions. He definitely loved dribbling and scoring goals and whichever team Kobbie was on would end up winning the games in training.
"We used to hand out man of the match trophies but you could have given it to him pretty much every week, so it was a case of handing it to best effort and that sort of thing. If it was just based on man of the match, Kobbie would have won it each time."
As the months progressed and the seasons changed, the same conversation between Mainoo's father and Vare would happen. "If Kobbie had gone into the U7s, I think he would have been head and shoulders above everyone else," Vare added.
"He needed to play maybe one or even two years up, or in an academy. I'd say to his dad that he’s basically too good to be down here but I haven’t got anywhere else in the Cheadle and Gatley set-up that would challenge him.
"So that’s when he looked elsewhere and found another team. It’s great to hear that he did find a route and got into a professional club. If you have serious aspirations about football and pushing yourselves, you need an academy set up."
But before joining United's academy aged nine, Stockport-born Mainoo and his father searched Manchester for a team that was good enough to challenge him and that could facilitate Vare's recommendation for the youngster to play up an age group.
Ian Kelly coached Mainoo at Failsworth Dynamos and he told the Manchester Evening News: "When we were at U7s and about halfway through the season, Kobbie's dad was standing next to me watching our game with him.
"We had a strong team and that's what his dad was looking for. I had enough players at the time, but I said that he could come to training. He came along and I found out he was a year younger, but he was really good and held his own."
Mainoo played above his age level throughout his time with Failsworth and that did not stop when he entered United's academy system, as he regularly played with older players in United's set-up, making over 10 appearances for the U18s when still an Under-16.
"We signed him on and because he played a year above," Kelly added. "It meant he could play for us until the Under-10s. His dribbling was great, but you could tell he'd never played for a team before, so the main thing was teaching him to pass the ball.
"He went to United's academy school at Under-8 level, obviously not signed on yet, while playing for Failsworth and you'd have to get him to pass again after playing there. His passing developed in the end and he was strong, small and stocky."
Kelly spent three years with Mainoo and he played him in different positions to accelerate his development. "He had a good shot from distance, a really powerful shot. He'd finish second as the team's top goalscorer, but he wouldn't play as a striker," Kelly said.
"I'd play Kobbie on the wing or in midfield. The lad I had up front scored most of the goals but Kobbie chipped in a lot. He was quick, so he was really good on the wing, but if you did put him in the middle, he could shoot and move the ball forward.
"My team was only small and he was one of the bigger lads, despite being a year below. We'd always win the league, we played for cups and we'd win those, we won 'the treble' in his last season, which was with the Under-10s.
"From that team, five of the 10 lads went to academies, but it's only Kobbie and a lad at Stockport that are still playing now. If anyone was getting up to mischief, it certainly wasn't Kobbie because his dad made sure that he took training seriously.
"There was one team visit to a tournament in Blackpool when we stayed over and I had a drink with Kobbie's dad, who is a really good bloke. He's a funny guy and we had a real laugh. We won that tournament and beat an academy side in the final.
"We also went down to Manchester City, a scout wanted us to play their team, and we only got beat by a goal. We had three games, we drew two and narrowly lost one, and the scout said we've never had a team that's come here and given them a game."
Kelly's team at Failsworth Dynamos was attracting interest from scouts from Greater Manchester and beyond and Mainoo was among those on the side whose progress was being tracked, but he eventually had an important choice to make: Blue or Red?
"To be fair, I didn't even know Kobbie had joined the academy at first," Kelly said. "His dad just told me one week that he was training at United, but I think Kobbie was actually at City and United. I think he was going to both because a lot do that
"Then he obviously chose one, which was Man United. I didn't hear anything for a bit, I knew he was still doing alright, then after the FA Youth Cup final, his dad text me and thanked me for what I'd done for him, which was nice.
"I'm a City fan myself, but I watched his debut against Charlton. I've not seen him face-to-face since he left Failsworth, when he would have been nine years old, so he's obviously changed from the little kid I remember and I'm just glad he's doing well.
"He was the same in his debut, holding them off and trying to dribble - that's just what he does. I'm very proud of him. You have to be dedicated, once you get older, as it's tempting to go out. He's done really well and I hope he carries on."
Kelly received a text message when Mainoo won the Youth Cup at Old Trafford, in front of a record-breaking 67,492 fans for the competition, whilst Vare, who coached him at Cheadle and Gatley, was in the stands that night.
Alejandro Garnacho, who scored seven goals during that successful Youth Cup campaign, was the poster boy of the United team, but it was Mainoo who was the heartbeat of the side and the most accomplished all-round performer.
It's understood academy staff consider Mainoo, who was the second youngest member of the Youth Cup winning team, as a real natural talent with high technical ability, while his dedication to improving his physical abilities has also been noted.
"I went to the Youth Cup final. He’s almost unrecognisable, as he’s a big lad now and he was only tiny when he was at Cheadle and Gatley," Vare added. "My description of him at the time was wiry, he was really strong and very quick off the mark.
"He was one of those that pushed the ball past a player and he would be electric, in terms of how he could spring forward. He's a tall lad now and I thought he had a really great game against Nottingham Forest in the Youth Cup final.
"I sometimes wind my kids up by saying I coached him and they say 'only for a short space of time'. Cheadle and Gatley obviously only played a small part in his development and as with anything in grassroots, it’s just a foundation for the youngsters.
"But everyone at Cheadle and Gatley are absolutely delighted for him and it's great to see him doing so well."
Just a few months after winning the Youth Cup, Mainoo made the first-team squad against Newcastle at Old Trafford in October and he made the bench again at Molineux on New Year's Eve.
After making the bench against Wolves, Mainoo had to wait just 10 days for what he'd been dreaming about, as he was named in the starting line-up to play Charlton Athletic at Old Trafford in the quarter-final of the League Cup on January 10.
Ten Hag explained that Mainoo 'deserved' his debut after impressing during the December winter camp in Spain and for performing well in training. The word 'deserved' was used again in Bruno Fernandes' congratulatory message after the game.
A beaming Mainoo emerged to speak to MUTV following his debut and he couldn't wipe away the grin that was etched on his face.
"It's an unbelievable feeling. I've been at this club all my life and it's all led to tonight. To have my family here watching me, surrounding me, it's just amazing," he said. "All my immediate family were here, I think bringing anyone else would be too much!
"They were all here, supporting me, and I waved to them after the game. The team sheet was put up and I was starting, so it was a bit of a shock but I thought, I've got to do a job. There were a few butterflies but it was more just excitement.
"I played at Old Trafford in the Youth Cup final and I remember that feeling. It was amazing and to have it again was brilliant."
Fewer than 24 hours on from his first-team debut, Mainoo was in Staffordshire to support his Under-18 teammates as they faced Stoke in the Youth Cup. He was back in Manchester the following morning for first-team training.
Mainoo has the talent and temperament required to make the grade at Old Trafford, and those who played a role in his development are all hopeful that he will.
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