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Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has spoken about losing talented Danish forward Chido Obi to Manchester United last summer. The striker put up outlandish numbers for the Gunners' youth teams, scoring 32 goals and providing three assists in 21 under-18 games before being signed by the Red Devils.
In a recent interview with the press, Arteta discussed losing the striker in the summer, admitting it was a decision on the player's part. He said via Tribal Football:
"Obviously, when a player decides that the best pathway for him is to leave, there's not much you can do. Very unfortunate because we want to keep our players from the academy and to be very successful with the first team. But in that case, with Ayden (Heaven), we weren't able to do that. To persuade a player to stay a player has to be willing to be with us and commit to us and I don’t know specifically, both parties will feel very different about it. The reality is that he has decided to move and we have moved on from that."
The Arsenal boss concluded by complimenting the striker, describing him as a massive threat in front of the goal. Arteta added:
'‘Massive goal threat, an attitude and love to be inside the box and a capacity to score in many different ways. That was him."
Obi could face his former side this weekend when Manchester United face the Gunners at Old Trafford tomorrow. He has played 73 minutes for the Red Devils across three games since he arrived in the summer.
Arsenal legend blasts Manchester United's poor attacking abilities
Former Arsenal striker Ian Wright has slammed Manchester United for its poor attacking threat. The Red Devils have looked particularly toothless this season, with Joshua Zirkzee's six goals and two assists from 41 appearances and Rasmus Hojlund's seven goals and one assist in 36 games far from impressive.
Speaking in an interview in February 2025, the former Gunners star said of the Red Devils via Mirror:
"Obviously, Zirkzee came on (against Leicester recently) and he got one but I don’t think they put the ball in the box enough. I don’t think there’s anyone in the box for when the cross comes in. I don’t think they link the play or keep the ball well enough in the final third to sustain pressure on a team."
"They lose the ball and then teams can break on them. There’s no structure to whether they are going to try to play through teams or around them. So the forwards don’t know what’s coming. They don’t get the kind of service they depend on. When’s the last time you saw a Man United player score a goal where he’s got across a guy at a near post? You don’t see those goals from Man United," Wright added.
Manchester United will face Arsenal tomorrow in the Premier League at Old Trafford. The Red Devils sit in 14th place in the league with just 33 goals from 27 games.
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Edited by Ankush Das