Arsenal‘s promising young forward Chido Obi-Martin has decided to leave the club, disappointing many Gunners fans.
Despite Arsenal’s efforts to retain the 16-year-old, including offering him new schoolboy terms as players under 17 cannot sign professional contracts, an agreement could not be reached, leading to his departure.
In a bid to lure Obi-Martin to their ranks, Manchester United provided the youngster with a private tour of their facilities. Although his next steps have yet to be officially confirmed, Obi-Martin announced his exit from Arsenal through a heartfelt social media post, writing “Thank you Arsenal” in the caption and attaching two pictures. In one of them, he is seen celebrating a goal for the Gunners, while the other picture contained a longer message expressing his gratitude to the coaches, staff, and teammates at Hale End.
Thank you @arsenal @ArsenalAcademy
Love always❤️ Chido-Obi Martin pic.twitter.com/rFv9c80XeU
Advertisement— Chidozie Obi-Martin (@chido_obi) July 30, 2024
Several Arsenal fans have reacted to Obi-Martin’s departure with disappointment, drawing parallels to the exit of Robin van Persie in 2012, which still resonates painfully with supporters. Seeing another promising talent potentially head in the same direction revived old wounds, and fans flooded the Instagram post with comments comparing Obi-Martin to Van Persie.
Obi-Martin was in inspirational form last season, netting five hat-tricks in the final nine games of the Under-18 Premier League season and even scoring seven past Norwich in a nine-goal thumping, which led United to chase his signature. While his exit is a setback, Arsenal fans have found some solace in the recent acquisition of Riccardo Calafiori, the Italy international centre-back who has joined the Gunners from Bologna.
🚨🔴 EXCLUSIVE: Chido Obi Martin to Man United, here we go! Talented striker leaves Arsenal and he’s just accepted Man Utd proposal.
AdvertisementPathway key for Chido who’s turned down higher bids from Germany to sign for Man United.
Project convinced 2007 born top talent to accept #MUFC. pic.twitter.com/oFv1xM32UU
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) July 30, 2024
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