Michael Carrick is preparing to take on the gauntlet of Manchester United, and he’ll be encouraged to see Chido Obi scoring goals for fun, but his teammate might be a more interesting project.
Benjamin Sesko’s mini-revival in form after Ruben Amorim’s departure means Michael Carrick will be excited to work with him.
Carrick’s style of play suits a striker with a good sense of movement, so Sesko fits that template perfectly.
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Benjamin Sesko shots on target vs Burnley compared to Rasmus Hojlund's shots on target in 2024/25 season
Benjamin Sesko shots on target vs Burnley compared to Rasmus Hojlund’s shots on target in 2024/25 season
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Beyond him, Chido Obi is also scoring goals for fun for the U21s, so United’s striker options look good. But what if the most interesting project at Carrington is another player entirely?
Gabriele Biancheri of Manchester United in action during the Premier League 2 match between Wolverhampton Wanderers U21 & Manchester United U21 at SEAH Stadium on January 12, 2026
Photo by Zohaib Alam – MUFC/Manchester United via Getty Images
Gabriele Biancheri’s leap is becoming impossible to ignore
Obi is the high-profile youngster, Sesko is the big-money signing, and Joshua Zirkzee is the reserve off the bench.
The No. 9 position at Old Trafford has a pretty set pecking order, but Gabriele Biancheri is doing everything in his power to gatecrash it.
In Man Utd U21s’ recent game against Wolves, a 4-1 win away from home, Obi scored twice and will grab the headlines, but Biancheri again put forward his case for getting senior minutes.
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The size was a concern with the Welsh striker, but Biancheri’s game has come on leaps and bounds to where he’s throwing himself into duels and coming out on top.
He’s managed to develop his game beyond being a pure poacher, as he is regularly involved in linking up the play selflessly and playing with his teammates.
Obi was the beneficiary of his tenaciousness against Wolves, as he scored a goal after Biancheri’s hard work, something that couldn’t be said of Biancheri two years ago.
The way he has started playing above his size solves the one major concern about how his game would translate to the senior level.
If anything, having the size advantage in youth teams is often detrimental to a player stepping up to senior football, since their all-around game is not developed.
Once they debut for the senior team and the physical advantage goes away, players can look extremely limited, but Biancheri’s case is the opposite.
It makes him an interesting project to nurture at Old Trafford.
It’s clear that Biancheri has gotten over his size hump and started to make regular contributions to the academy sides.
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United simply can’t give up on his potential, and the way he has developed his game speaks volumes about his driven mentality.
What he needs now is the next challenge in the form of first-team football, which is more likely to be on loan, at least this season.
After elimination from both cup competitions, United have just 17 more games to play between now and the end of the season.
That’s not nearly enough to rotate four strikers (Obi, Sesko, Zirkzee, Biancheri), so Biancheri, being at the bottom of the pecking order, needs to go on loan.
He already looks ready to contribute to a Championship-level side, but a League One loan wouldn’t go amiss either.
He needs the next challenge because his growth is undeniable.
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