Ruben Amorim was seen hurrying Chido Obi to come on before his Premier League debut in Manchester United’s 1-0 loss at Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, journalist Laurie Whitwell has revealed.
The Portuguese tactician was reportedly telling Obi to ‘get ready quicker’ just before he entered play in the second half, as United scrambled for a late equaliser against Spurs.
Obi was among a host of youngsters on the bench on Sunday and was the only one to feature, replacing Casemiro in stoppage time and becoming the 252nd academy graduate in the club’s history.
The 17-year-old did not manage a single touch of the ball in his brief cameo as United slumped to another defeat, leaving them 15th in the Premier League table.
Chido Obi Makes Man United Debut
In the 1-0 loss at Tottenham
Whitwell, speaking on the Talk of the Devils podcast, revealed that Amorim hurried Obi to get ready late in the second half:
“I saw Chido warming up on his own. I was like, has he just gone out to warm up because he’s like, pick me, pick me?
“But actually, I think he had been told to go out. It was a few minutes before he was sort of due to come on and Amorim actually, you know, was kind of hurrying him up when he kind of called him back and was telling him to get ready quicker.”
Obi joined United from Arsenal last summer and has continued to impress for their academy sides, scoring 15 goals and providing four assists in 18 appearances across all competitions.
The 17-year-old has been a regular in first-team training in recent weeks and was named on the bench for the first time on Sunday, amid a growing injury crisis at Old Trafford.
United were without 12 senior players against Spurs, including Amad Diallo, who suffered a season-ending injury in training.
The likes of Kobbie Mainoo, Leny Yoro, Manuel Ugarte, and Lisandro Martinez were also unavailable, with Victor Lindelof the only substitute with first-team experience on Sunday.
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Chido Obi’s Man United Youth Stats (2024/25) |
|
|
Games |
18 |
|
Goals |
15 |
|
Assists |
4 |
|
Minutes played |
1,111 |
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Statistics courtesy of Playmaker and Transfermarkt. Correct as of 17-02-25.
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