‘Arsenal annoyed after Mikel Arteta failed with personal striker intervention’
Arsenal were left annoyed after Mikel Arteta failed to convince a youth sensation to remain at the club before he joined Man United, reports The Telegraph.
17-year-old Chido Obi made his debut for Man United in the 1-0 loss to Tottenham on Sunday (16 February).
The talented striker joined the Red Devils from Arsenal in the summer, despite a personal intervention from Arteta falling flat, The Telegraph reports.
The loss of the striker is a source of considerable irritation for the club’s hierarchy, who had worked hard to keep Obi in North London.
With Kai Havertz out injured for the rest of the season, Arsenal have been forced to look at signing a free-agent like Diego Costa, where Obi would have potentially fit in perfectly had he not moved to Old Trafford.
The striker chose to join United, due to concerns over his pathway to first-team action with the Gunners, and the Manchester club were willing to offer the young striker a more considerable financial package.
Arsenal are believed to have presented a plan that would have seen Obi transition form the U18 team, into the U21 team this season, whilst training with the first-team squad.
The Denmark U17 striker instead wanted to progress faster, having scored 32 goals in 18 games for the U18 side last year.
Arsenal injuries makes Chido Obi move to Man United even worse
Football Insider Verdict
Havertz is not the only Arsenal star set to see out the rest of the campaign on the side-lines, as Bukayo Saka suffered a hamstring tear against Crystal Palace in December.
Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Martinelli are also out injured, with the former suffering an ACL injury.
Obi has consistently been spoken about as one of the Premier League’s most talented young strikers, and losing him for a nominal fee could end up being heart-breaking in the long run for Arsenal fans.
It is somewhat surprising that the Gunners were unwilling to give the Danish striker some first-team guarantees, giving the rate at which he scored at in youth football.
Jesus and Havertz are talented players, but neither offer the pure goal scoring ability that Obi offers, and despite his young age, he has clearly been ready for senior football by United.
Man United poach Ayden Heaven and Chido Obi from Arsenal
Ayden Heaven joined Man United from Arsenal on 1 February, and appears to be following the pathway from Gunners academy into the Red Devils’ first team that Obi did before him.
The young centre-half found himself stuck behind the duo of William Saliba and Gabriel, and made the move north in the winter transfer window.
Whilst that duo has established themselves as one of the top centre-back pairings in the Premier League, the injuries to key strikers highlight the need for squad depth in the most physically demanding league in the world.