Why Chido Obi-Martin cannot play for Manchester United in Europa League?

The teenager has played two Premier League games for the senior team.

Chido Obi-Martin, a teenage star, will not play for Manchester United against Real Sociedad in the Europa League last-16.

The youthful player, who moved from Arsenal to the Red Devils in October 2024, has recently been promoted, rather quickly, to the senior squad. In his most recent outing, he came off the bench in an FA Cup fifth-round match against Fulham, marking his third senior appearance for United.

It is anticipated that Chido Obi-Martin will play more minutes in the upcoming weeks after showing a lot of energy in the match and nearly scoring a goal. However, Ruben Amorim will not have access to him for continental competition.

The 17-year-old is ineligible, which is why. Prior to the Europa League knockout stages, United did add January additions Patrick Dorgu and Ayden Heaven to their roster, but according to ESPN, Chido Obi was passed over because he “was not considered a first-team player at the time.”

He isn’t eligible for a spot on the B list, which is composed of young professionals, as he hasn’t played for United for at least two years.

Although Rasmus Hojlund is expected to start in the front line, he has only scored seven goals this season, the most recent of which came on December 12 after 18 games. Joshua Zirkzee, who missed the penalty in United’s heartbreaking shootout loss to Fulham, could play alongside the Danish star.

The former Atalanta attacker has performed well in the Europa League despite having trouble for the team in the league. Despite only making eight appearances, Hojlund has contributed to five of his seven goals in the competition.

The Dane scored one goal against Porto and two goals each against Bodo/Glimt and Viktoria Plzen. None of his teammates have scored as many goals in the Europa League as he has. If he wants to preserve Manchester United’s season, he will have to get back to that level of play in the tournament.

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