Manchester United batter Chelsea 5-1 in heavyweight FA Youth Cup clash

Chido Obi was in full flow during last night's FA Youth Cup clash between Manchester United and Chelsea, scoring a hat-trick to help his side progress to the next round.

The talented Dane, signed from Arsenal in the summer has been gathering a head of steam this season as he continues to illustrate his outstanding centre-forward abilities.

Now the highest scoring under-18 player of all time in England, Chido Obi has sparked conversation amongst Manchester United fans, some of whom are beginning to wonder if he may be ready for involvement in Ruben Amorim’s first-team squad amid their goalscoring woes - his hat-trick last night only adding fuel to the fire.

United and Obi’s night didn’t begin as planned, going behind in the 20th minute against the run of play, but Adam Lawrence’s Reds quickly pulled together to mount a convincing response.

Chido Obi picks up the match ball after scoring a hat-trick against Chelsea.

Manchester United and Chelsea - two undisputed FA Youth Cup titans in their own right - were bidding to progress to the next round of the country’s most iconic youth competition before kick-off at Leigh Sports Village yesterday evening.

Chelsea have won the competition an impressive nine times, seven of which came between 2010 and 2018 during a superb run of dominance underpinned by a monopoly of top-level youth recruitment. The likes of Mason Mount, Callum Hudson-Odoi, Ruben Loftus Cheek, Tammy Abraham, Fikayo Tomori and Reece James emanated from these sides.

Chelsea lift their fourth successive Youth Cup in 2017.

This is second only to United of course, who boast a record eleven wins, the latest coming in 2022 when Alejandro Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo announced their talents to a packed Old Trafford in the final against Nottingham Forest, and for that gifted pair the rest is history.

Alejandro Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo celebrate after scoring in the FA Youth Cup final in 2022.

Neither Adam Lawrence nor Hassan Sulaiman - United and Chelsea’s under-18 managers respectively - would leave anything in reserve for this one, both fielding particularly strong line-ups.

Team-sheets given out at Leigh Sports Village prior to kick-off.

In Red, the likes of Gabriele Biancheri, Chido Obi, Jack and Tyler Fletcher and Harry Amass stand out as well-known names (not to detract from their teammates who all offer similar quality), some contributing significantly to the success of last season during which Adam Lawrence led his side to three domestic trophies.

United also had the luxury of an incredibly strong bench featuring Godwill Kukonki (who Ruben Amorim has spoken fondly of), Shea Lacey, Jim Thwaites, Jayce Fitzgerald and Amir Ibragimov.

United line up for a team-photo before kick-off.

In Blue, a younger side featuring a number of exciting prospects like Shumaira (Shim) Mheuka, Kiano Dyer, Ollie Harrison and a handful emerging from a particularly outstanding under-16 crop, namely Ryan Kavuma-McQueen, Reggie Walsh and substitute Ibrahim Rabbaj.

The momentous occasion saw a star-studded attendance which included the likes of Darren Fletcher, Jason Wilcox (technical director), Christopher Vivell (recruitment director) and Nick Cox (academy director) present at leigh Sports Village. These are figures that play a marked role in overseeing the pathway’s and developmental trajectories of United’s young players.

Jason Wilcox watches on from the stands.

Darren Fletcher, who currently acts as a portal of communication between the club’s academy and first team was no doubt filled with a strong sense of pride watching his two boys start together in United’s midfield.

Mheuka got the game underway for Chelsea who looked bright in the opening minutes but soon appeared perturbed as they found their unconvincing efforts to play out from the back thwarted by United’s fierce high press.

The Reds having ridden out some early attacks launched by Chelsea found their groove and began moving the ball with pace and conviction in the opposition’s half.

Harry Amass found himself felled on the edge of the box winning a free-kick which Jack Fletcher stood over, delivering a promising out-swinging ball into the danger-zone, certain to be met by the seeking-missile of Chido Obi’s head if it weren’t for a huddle of Chelsea defender’s crowding the centre of the box.

Jack Fletcher stands over a free-kick.

The complimentary striker duo of Obi and Biancheri set the tone for their side’s attacking pursuits early-doors with a number of well-timed runs met by the deft playmaking efforts of United’s midfielders and full-backs.

It looked like United would surely find their opener as Jack Fletcher was found on the left of the box by a looping ball, but his attempt deflected off the crossbar and fell to James Scanlon, his close-range effort miraculously kept out by Chelsea’s Hudson Sands with a cat-like reflex-save.

Despite United looking the far more threatening side, it was Chelsea who broke the deadlock after 20 minutes played, as Biancheri was pick-pocketed by Dyer in the middle of the park who squared the ball across to Walsh for a confident first-time finish.

Chelsea celebrate after taking the lead at Leigh Sports Village.

A visible frustration fell on the faces of United’s players who knew they’d given away a cheap goal despite having been the dominant side up to that point, though their subsequent response was everything manager Adam Lawrence could have hoped for.