Manchester United have finally secured the signing of 16-year-old Chido Obi-Martin, after a wait for clearance was concluded this morning.
The Premier League’s five-step clearing process was resolved, allowing the former Arsenal striker to officially join United.
Obi-Martin has been training individually in the summer.
The youngster has been posting videos on his Instagram looking sharp and focused waiting for the deal to go through.
Obi-Martin confirmed the deal on his Instagram story, posting a photo shaking hands with Manchester United legend Eric Cantona.
Despite Arsenal and Mikel Arteta’s strong efforts to keep hold of the talented youngster, Obi-Martin opted for a move to Old Trafford, seeing a clearer pathway to first-team football.
This decision may be influenced by United’s heavy use of academy graduates.
United academy graduates racked up a league-high 34,076 minutes in the 2023/24 season.
It is also believed that new Manchester United assistant coach Ruud van Nistelrooy played a big part in persuading Obi-Martin, with the youngster turning down more lucrative offers from Germany.
Obi-Martin demonstrated his immense goalscoring ability at Arsenal’s U18 level last season.
Netting 32 goals in just 20 games, including a staggering seven-goal haul against Norwich, the young striker was on fire.
He also made headlines by scoring 10 goals in an U16 clash against Liverpool.
This drew comparisons to Erling Haaland’s nine-goal feat for Norway’s U20 team.
Manchester United will be hopeful that Obi-Martin can replicate some of that success in senior football.
Fast-tracked to Arsenal’s U21s and training with the first team at just 15, Obi-Martin’s rapid rise has caught the attention of many.
With Danish-Nigerian roots, and eligibility to represent England, he looks to have opted for Denmark.
In this article, we’ll take a deeper look at why there is so much excitement around Obi-Martin and what makes him such a prolific goalscorer.