Paul Aladejare will never forget the phone call. It was August 2020 and his scout leader ArsenalThe academy rang, although this time it wasn’t to tell him which game he was assigned to.

Arsenal’s head of recruitment from under-12s to under-14s had received unusual information that two Danish brothers had just emigrated to the UK with their family. The siblings had a good reputation, but having never seen them perform before, they wanted to see if they were worth pursuing.

Combining his role as regional scouting coordinator for Arsenal in London with his work as founder of the CrownPro Elite Academy, Aladejare was asked to include the mystery duo in an exhibition match against the XYZ Football Academy at Mabley Green in Hackney.

“I saw these two boys approaching us,” Aladejare said. “I couldn’t believe it. They were both well built but one of them just looked different. He had such long legs and walked with such swagger. I asked myself, “Who the hell is this?” »

After 20 minutes, Aladejare phoned his Arsenal boss: “You need to get here straight away and mark the mother of this child. There are scouts from every club in London asking who he is and where he comes from.

His name was Chido Obi – his middle name is Martin – and that evening was the last time he walked onto a football field without people knowing exactly who he was.

Today he is one of the brightest prospects in English football and last week became the all-time top scorer in the Under-18 Premier League.

Data from Transfermarkt

However, he broke the record by not playing for Arsenal but Manchester Unitedwith with whom he signed his first professional contract in October at the age of 17.

On that day in Hackney, east London, four years ago, some of the speculation centered on its origin. Obi has a Nigerian father, but Aladejare found his mother estranged, who said he was born and raised in Denmark.

Obi was playing for Kjobenhavns Boldklub, one of the most prominent clubs in Danish football which has served as Copenhagen’s academy system since the club’s inception in 1992. The reason for Chido and his brother Chuck’s move was that their mother was moving to the UK to study to become a nurse.

“His English was not very good but he understood football terms,” Aladejare explains. “At halftime, I tried to make him simplify things by telling him: ‘Run, control, shoot.’

“He scored four goals. They were also all excellent finishes. In the final minute, he spread the ball away, passed three players, cut it and curled it into the far corner at full speed as if nothing had happened. He was the real deal. But a scout I was talking to thought he looked good, he wasn’t there technically, so he predicted he would move to center back. I looked up at the sky and shook my head.

Obi, eligible for England, Nigeria as well as Denmark, joined the CrownPro Elite Academy and trained with them for months before being given a two-week trial at Arsenal with his brother, who was signed later. The paperwork required to confirm the 13-year-old’s move was an onerous task. It took Arsenal over six months to complete the deal and they had to meet various criteria from the Home Office and the Football Association to complete the deal.

Obi was around 1.87m tall at the age of 16 and quickly became an internet sensation, with highlights of his goals going viral. He scored 32 goals in 18 games for the under-18s when he was younger. He even accumulated 10 against Liverpool at the under-16 level. His physical advantage was distinctive and coaches at the academy know that they must keep in mind that the physical development of each player is different. That’s why Arsenal offers early developers, such as Obi, a blended program, with exposure to different age groups to support their growth.

Obi is a clinical clean finisher who scores different types of goals and at Arsenal he often underwent additional individual training, improving his overall game, including his hold-up game, while balancing his studies for his GCSE exams. last summer.

Obi signs for Manchester United (Photo: Manchester United)

“I did individual technical sessions with him even when he was at Arsenal,” Aladejare explains. “He was like a sponge. He could take 10 shots, score nine and if he missed one, he wanted to do it again. He starts again until he succeeds. He used to be a good finisher and now he’s a great finisher. He can still be better in his striking but he has a rather unconventional technique. But if he always ends up in the corner of the net, who cares?

Despite the North London club brings him into CrownPro’s academy systemthey will not be able to take advantage of his first-team talent after he leaves for Manchester United this summer after his schoolboy terms expire.

Arsenal made Obi what they thought was a good offer within their salary structure, but according to a source close to the matter, who wished to remain anonymous to protect their relationships, Obi firmly believed in the path to the first team of Manchester United given their reputation for promoting youth products.

Obi celebrates a hat-trick for Arsenal U18s against Southampton in 2023 (Photo: David Price/Arsenal FC/Getty Images)

Obi’s arrival was sparked by Luke Fedorenko, United’s academy recruitment manager, who built a good relationship with the player and his family to help progress the transfer, while the director of academy Nick Cox also helped.

Matt Hargreaves, director of football negotiations, secured the deal, while technical director Jason Wilcox, who spent 11 years as Manchester CityThe director of the academy was also involved. United’s financial commitment has also been a factor and he can now earn a substantial salary for a young player after turning 17 last week and signing his first professional contract. Obi shared the news of his deal on social media, alongside a photo of his younger self wearing a United shirt.

In October, he marked his debut for United’s under-18s with a hat-trick in the first 15 minutes against Nottingham Forest.

When Obi joined United, before the appointment of Ruben Amorim, the plan was for him to do at least a year of university football, mainly with the under-18s, and not to rush him. United’s academy is conscious not to overdo young players, particularly in their early stages of development. Obi scored the only goal on his under-21 debut off the bench against Rochdale last night, but is yet to train with the first team and there are no immediate plans to join.

Regardless, many people believe in its potential.

“He thinks he’s the best player in the world in his age group,” Aladejare says. “That’s his mentality.”

Additional reporting: Laurie Whitwell

(Photo: Zohaib Alam – MUFC/Manchester United via Getty Images)