Chido Obi was considered one of England’s most dominant young strikers when he arrived at Manchester United, but he has needed a lot of work.
Signed from Arsenal as arguably the best U18 striker in the country, Chido Obi was the poster boy for Ineos’ attempts to invest in the academy.
Obi subsequently dominated for Manchester United in the U18 Premier League, earning rave reviews and becoming undeniable for Ruben Amorim.
The result of his rampant goal-scoring form meant Obi earned his United senior debut in February 2025, but this was the height of his rise so far, failing to impress, and this season, he has yet to play first-team football.
Now it has emerged that former U21 head coach and current first team coach Travis Binnion had one gripe with Obi.
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Chido Obi left Travis Binnion frustrated because of one aspect of his game
This season, Obi has been back in the U21s for United, with the plan being that he will develop better with less pressure.
He has had a decent season, but Amorim called Obi out, defending his lack of academy usage by implying that he wasn’t good enough.
Obi has been under Binnion for the majority of this season and now, according to a report by The Sun, the ex-U21s lead coach had one issue with the Danish youth international.
It is claimed that the coach now assisting Michael Carrick has regularly ‘despaired’ at Obi’s questionable work rate off the ball this season.
The report then adds that Obi is going to have to see his performances improve a lot in order to add to his eight first-team appearances.
This is because right now, Louie Bradbury is outperforming Obi at United in terms of the academy strikers. Additionally, Gabriele Biancheri is on loan at Rotherham and could return as a markedly better player.
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Manchester United will be happy with Obi development but he needs more
Obi has notched up seven U21 goals for United this season, along with one for the U18s, however, this return is far from the unstoppable force he was last season.
Part of the reason for this is potentially that Obi has been working on other parts of his game, such as hold-up play, decision-making, and creativity, as shown with his five assists.
Despite Binnion not liking his work rate, Obi has been working harder off the ball this season than last, running more and hunting defenders on a more frequent basis as the season has progressed.
Putting it all together will be Obi’s main challenge now, to do all the intangibles of being a striker, and then also adding a high return of goals.
Hopefully, we see him improve, with competition from Bradbury, good for both forwards.
from United In Focus https://ift.tt/o9IVgA5