Manchester United's Chido Obi – The under-18 record goalscorer who left Arsenal for Old Trafford

Paul Aladejare will never forget the phone call. It was August 2020 and his scouting boss at Arsenal’s academy was ringing, although this time it was not with instructions on which game he was being assigned to.

Arsenal’s head of recruitment from under-12 to under-14 had been given an unusual tip-off that two brothers from Denmark had just emigrated to the UK with their family. The siblings had a good reputation but having never seen them play before, they wanted to check whether they were worth pursuing.

Pairing his role as a regional scouting co-ordinator for Arsenal in London with his work as the founder of CrownPro Elite Academy, Aladejare was asked to include the mystery duo in a showcase game against XYZ Football Academy at Mabley Green in Hackney.

“I saw these two boys walking over to us,” says Aladejare. “I couldn’t believe it. They were both well built but one of them just looked different. He was so leggy and walked with such a swagger. I thought, ‘Who on earth is this?’”

After 20 minutes, Aladejare phoned his Arsenal boss: “You have to get here right now and man-mark this kid’s mum. There are scouts from every club in London asking who he is and where he has come from.”

His name was Chido Obi — his middle name is Martin — and that evening was the final time he walked onto a football pitch without people knowing exactly who he was.

Today, he is one of the brightest prospects in English football and last week became the all-time record goalscorer in the Under-18 Premier League.

Data from Transfermarkt

He broke the record, however, not playing for Arsenal but Manchester United, with whom he signed his first professional contract in October upon turning 17.

On that day in Hackney, east London, four years ago, part of the speculation was about where he was from. Obi has a Nigerian father but Aladejare found his mother on the sideline, who said that he was born and raised in Denmark.

Obi had been playing for Kjobenhavns Boldklub, one of the pre-eminent clubs in Danish football who have served as Copenhagen’s academy feeder system since the club’s creation in 1992. The reason for Chido and his brother Chuck’s relocation was their mother moving to the UK to study to become a nurse.

“His English wasn’t great but he understood football terms,” says Aladejare. “At half-time, I tried to get him to simplify things so said, ‘Run, skill, shoot’.

“He scored four goals. They were all excellent finishes, too. In the final minute, he got the ball wide, went past three players, cut in and curled it into the far corner at top speed as if it was nothing. He was the real deal. But one scout I was chatting to thought he looked OK, wasn’t there technically, so predicted he would become a centre-half. I looked up at the sky and shook my head.”

Obi, who is eligible for England and Nigeria as well as Denmark, joined CrownPro Elite Academy and trained with them for months before being given a two-week trial at Arsenal along with his brother, who was signed at a later date. The paperwork required to confirm the 13-year-old’s move was an onerous endeavour. It took Arsenal over six months to complete and they had to satisfy various Home Office and Football Association criteria to get the deal over the line.

Obi was about 6ft 2in (1.87m) at age 16 and soon became an internet sensation, with highlights of his goals going viral. He scored 32 goals in 18 games for the under-18s despite being years younger. He even racked up 10 against Liverpool at under-16 level. His physical advantage was distinctive and academy coaches know they need to keep in mind that every player’s physical development is different. This is why Arsenal give early developers, such as Obi, a mixed programme, with exposure across different age groups to support their growth.

Obi is a clean clinical finisher who scores different types of goals and at Arsenal he often did extra individual training, improving his general game, including his hold-up play, while balancing studies for his GCSE exams last summer.

“I did one-on-one technical sessions with him even when he was at Arsenal,” says Aladejare. “He was like a sponge. He could take 10 shots, bag nine and if he missed one he wanted to start again. He goes again until he gets it right. He used to be a good finisher and now he’s a great finisher. He can still be better in his striking but he’s got quite an unconventional technique. But if it is still ending up in the corner of the net then who cares?”

Despite the north London club bringing him into the academy system from CrownPro, they will not get to enjoy his talent at first-team level after he left for Manchester United this summer following the expiry of his schoolboy terms.

Arsenal made Obi what they felt was a good offer within the boundaries of their wage structure but according to one source familiar with the situation, who wished to remain anonymous to protect relations, Obi believed strongly in the path to the first team at Manchester United given their reputation for promoting youth products.

Obi’s arrival was triggered by Luke Fedorenko, United’s head of academy recruitment, who built a good rapport with the player and his family to help progress the move, while director of academy Nick Cox also assisted.

Matt Hargreaves, director of football negotiations, got the deal over the line, while technical director Jason Wilcox, who spent 11 years as Manchester City’s academy director, was also involved. The financial commitment from United was also a factor and he now stands to earn a substantial wage for a youth player after turning 17 last week and signing his first professional contract. Obi shared the news of his deal on social media accompanied by a picture of his younger self in a United shirt.

In October, he marked his debut for United’s under-18s with a hat-trick in the first 15 minutes against Nottingham Forest.

When Obi joined United, before the appointment of Ruben Amorim, the plan was for him to have at least a year of academy football, primarily with the under-18s, and not to rush him. United’s academy are conscious not to overhype young players, especially in their early stages of development. Obi assisted the only goal on his under-21 debut off the bench against Rochdale last night but is yet to train with the first team and there are no immediate plans for integration.

Either way, there are plenty who believe in his potential.

“He believes he is the best player at his age group in the world,” says Aladejare. “That is his mentality.”

Additional reporting: Laurie Whitwell

(Photo: Zohaib Alam – MUFC/Manchester United via Getty Images)