UNBELIEVABLE Man Utd blunder has ruined Amorim's Europa League hopes

Tom Weber

Updated: 3 Mar 2025 17:55 GMT
4 min read

Ruben Amorim, Man Utd, 2024/25 — © IMAGO

Manchester United will be without Chido Obi for the remainder of their Europa League campaign after opting not to register him ahead of the knockout stage.

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The Red Devils' miserable season hit a new nadir on Sunday as Ruben Amorim's men were knocked out of the FA Cup on penalties by Fulham. However, there was one player who came away from the match with credit in the bank.

17-year-old striker prodigy Chido Obi replaced misfiring €74 million forward Rasmus Hojlund after 68 minutes and had an impressive impact. Though he did not score, the Denmark youth international proved a handful for the Fulham defence and had several big chances.

With Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee, who missed the decisive spot-kick in the shootout, again disappointing, there is a solid argument to be made that Obi is the best No.9 option currently at Amorim's disposal.

It therefore comes as a massive blow to Man Utd's hopes of salvaging this rotten campaign that the teenager is not eligible to feature in the Europa League.

Man Utd's embarrassing Obi blunder

The Manchester World has pointed out that Man Utd did not register the 17-year-old for their Europa League A-list when they had the chance to do so after the January transfer window.

Obi was only officially signed from Arsenal in October after the Premier League's due diligence process delayed the transfer. Signed for the U18s, Man Utd felt that there was no point in registering Obi as it wasn't expected that he would feature so prominently so soon after joining.

Despite his age, the Dane is also not eligible for Man Utd's Europa League B-list because he has not been with the club 'for an uninterrupted period of a minimum of two years,' which is one of UEFA's requirements.

Man Utd find themselves 14 points off the top four in the Premier League standings, so the Europa League is basically their last remaining hope of making it into next season's Champions League and thereby securing the vitally important funds that qualification entails.

Man Utd travel to Donostia/San Sebastian in the Basque Country on Thursday to take on Real Sociedad in the first leg of their round of 16 tie. Erreala are coming off a tough run of fixtures, playing - and losing to - Real Madrid and Barcelona in the past two games.