The Gunners wonderkid has already earned a fearsome reputation and now has a big decision to make on his future
April 27 was a significant day in the 2023-24 Premier League season. West Ham drew with Liverpool – essentially ending the Reds' slim title hopes, Burnley held Manchester United to a draw at Old Trafford while Sheffield United finally had their relegation confirmed after being smashed by Newcastle.
Before all of that, though, social media was set ablaze by the scoring antics of one Chido Martin-Obi. The Arsenal Under-18s star was simply sublime against Norwich City, helping himself to no less than seven goals en route to a 9-0 victory.
It was a key milestone in Martin-Obi's fledgling career, with the centre-forward now being quietly spoken about as one of the most exciting products to come out of the Gunners' prolific Hale End academy in recent years.
He's already garnered over 200,000 followers on Instagram, has signed a boot deal with adidas and even attracted transfer interest from the likes of Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund. Arsenal were understandably desperate to keep a hold of the player, who has enjoyed a rapid ascent to the summit of youth football. But it now seems Martin-Obi will be moving on this summer, with Manchester United close to convincing him to leave North London behind as he eyes a first-team breakthrough in the next few years.
Getty ImagesWhere it all began
Martin-Obi was born in Glostrup, Denmark on November 29 2007 to a Danish mother and Nigerian father. Located a stone's throw from Copenhagen, his footballing journey began at Kjobenhavns Boldklub, one of the capital's many clubs.
When he was only 14, he was snapped up by Arsenal, with he and his family moving over to England as a result. It wasn't long before he found himself playing well above his age group too. He made his debut for the Under-18s when he was 15, eventually earning a maiden start in September 2023 against Southampton.
Naturally, it went extremely well. Inside 38 minutes he had already scored his first goal and five minutes from time he clinched a hat-trick that left manager Jack Wilshere delighted. He would soon boost his reputation even further, though.
AdvertisementGetty ImagesThe big break
It's hard to look past that aforementioned Norwich display for Martin-Obi's breakout moment. However, those keeping a closer eye on youth football will have been familiar with the player even before then.
Back in October 2023, he made headlines by scoring no less than 10 goals in an Under-16 fixture against Liverpool. The achievement did come with one significant caveat, as the Reds were apparently forced to use an outfielder between the sticks due to injury, but there was no doubting the quality of some of the goals.
Throughout the game, Martin-Obi streaked ahead of the Liverpool defence with ease before remaining calm to make the net bulge with a range of clever finishes. He also converted a penalty and got on the end of one cross to bag a goal with his head. After the game, he posted a smiling selfie on his social media with the matchball. Since then, he's kicked on massively.
How it's going
His antics in the Liverpool mauling clearly caught Mikel Arteta's eye. Just days later, Martin-Obi would be invited to train with the first-team squad before his 16th birthday. He even fared well enough to earn a start in the UEFA Youth League against Sevilla, with the Gunners on the wrong side of a 2-1 scoreline.
Two more appearances in that competition would follow alongside the likes of Myles Lewis-Skelley and Reuell Walters, as Martin-Obi continued to prove he belongs with the older age groups. And it's not just at club level that he's been surpassing expectations.
Martin-Obi has represented both Denmark and England at international level and, remarkably, both teams named him in their squads for some February friendlies back in 2023. On that occasion he opted for England, but more recent evidence suggests he may be leaning towards representing the country of his birth.
He has a fearsome goal record for Denmark Under-17s, netting 10 times in just 14 appearances, including two in the recent European Championship – where he was also named in the team of the tournament. The Danish FA will be keeping everything crossed that he continues to turn out for them moving forward.
Biggest strengths
Martin-Obi's international boss Jesper Mikkelsen has neatly summed up what makes the striker so devastating at youth level.
"When you look at Chido, he doesn't look like someone who hasn't turned 16 yet. First of all, he has a physique that is really advantageous as a football player," he told . "He is big and strong, but he is also reasonably agile. He is good at sticking to the game, but he is actually also good at challenging and dribbling himself."
All of this is immediately obvious when you watch him play. He towers above most of his opponents in Under-18 games and is often the quickest player on the field by a stretch too. Thanks to these physical gifts, he's able to create plenty of chances for himself and he takes a decent proportion of them thanks to excellent finishing capabilities.
Martin-Obi is particularly deadly with his right foot and his signature finish is swiftly becoming an open-body slot into the bottom corner. Thierry Henry would be proud. Henry also would have enjoyed his impudent chip against West Ham in April.