Manchester United have high hopes for Chido Obi with the teenage striker catching the eye against Fulham earlier this month.
Manchester United have lacked goals this season with Ruben Amorim no doubt a little frustrated.
Rasmus Hojlund has been backed by Wayne Rooney but his goal drought has now been extended to 20 games.
Joshua Zirkzee and Alejandro Garnacho have struggled for goals this season too, meaning that United have managed just 34 goals in 28 Premier League games.
This is surely an area of focus this summer with United keen on Jean-Philippe Mateta having excelled at Crystal Palace of late.
Photo by Simon Stacpoole/Offside/Offside via Getty Images
Photo by Simon Stacpoole/Offside/Offside via Getty Images
Chris Sutton on Manchester United’s Chido Obi
United will hope that Hojlund finds his shooting boots again but he is now under pressure from a fellow Dane.
Chido Obi left Arsenal for United over the summer with the teenage striker making a bold move to Old Trafford.
Obi has been a goal machine in United’s development ranks and has now been given a first-team chance.
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Amorim praised Obi after a cameo against Tottenham Hotspur and gave him extended playing time against Fulham in the FA Cup.
Alan Shearer hailed Obi for that performance and United fans can’t wait to see more of the teenager in action.
Pundit Chris Sutton – Shearer’s former strike partner at Blackburn Rovers – has now joined in with the praise for Obi.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, Sutton has suggested that Obi is ‘raw’ but ‘extremely physical’ given that he was taking on Fulham’s Calvin Bassey.
Sutton was seriously impressed with Obi, suggesting that he looks ‘explosive’ with his pace alongside his physicality, with that side of the game a ‘big, big deal’ for Sutton.
Sutton added that Obi looks ‘fearless’ right now, believing that he hasn’t been scarred by United’s first-team struggles.
“There is no doubt that Obi seems a little bit raw, which is normal at 17 with only 73 minutes of first team action to his name so far, but he looks extremely physical,” said Sutton.
“The one thing for me at 17 was that I was still developing physically but Obi, anyone who can muscle Calvin Bassey off the ball as he did, you take your hat off too. Physically he does look like he is there and then he also looks explosive.
“There are certain elements of his game I am sure he is working hard on, but to go in at Premier League level, at the top level, and be able to cope physically is a big, big deal. He coped very well in that aspect. Now the challenge to him is to refine his skills as much as anything.
“He looks fearless to me. That’s what you get from young players because he hasn’t been part of this struggling team,” he added.
Chido Obi chances may not be regular
We would love to see more of Obi and his youthful exuberance certainly injected life into United’s display against Fulham.
Chances may be difficult to come by though with Obi left as an unused substitute against Arsenal on Sunday.
When Amorim decided to rest Hojlund by leaving him on the bench, it was Zirkzee who got the nod up top.
That suggests that, even if Hojlund does pick up an injury, Zirkzee would be moved from number 10 to centre forward.
Obi is not registered for Europa League action either, so it would be a surprise to see him start a first-team game before the summer.
Still, Obi should get opportunities from the bench and will be looking to catch the eye again – just as he did against Fulham.