Rio Ferdinand was encouraged by teenager Chido Obi-Martin’s cameo for Manchester United in the FA Cup but says the ‘excitement’ stemmed from the fact Rasmus Hojlund has been ‘so bad recently’.
Obi-Martin replaced Hojlund midway through the second half of Sunday’s FA Cup clash against Fulham and produced some promising moments despite United falling to a narrow defeat on penalties.
Manchester United signed the 17-year-old from Arsenal last summer and have started to include him in senior matchday squads after a series of impressive performances for the U18 side.
Ferdinand believes there is ‘something there’ with Obi-Martin and was ‘excited’ by his introduction against Fulham, though he believes this was at least partly due to Hojlund’s continued struggles at Old Trafford.
Signed for £72m in 2023, Hojlund has thus far failed to live up to his price-tag, scoring just two goals in the Premier League this season.
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Manchester United legend Ferdinand says Hojlund looks ‘fearful’ on the pitch and admits he has been ‘so bad recently’ under Ruben Amorim.
‘That result killed me,’ Ferdinand, speaking on his YouTube channel, said of United’s FA Cup defeat to Fulham. ‘I was on the floor.
‘This United side can’t create chances, they can’t score goals. It’s a joke.
‘For me, because Hojlund has been so off it and so bad recently, when you saw that kid [Obi-Martin] come on, everyone got excited with the little things.
‘It was refreshing to see from a kid that young. Hojlund looks fearful on the pitch.
‘Chido is still rough around the edges and you’d expect that given his age. But what I have no doubt about is that he will get chances.
‘I watched him against my two boys and the way he played against Fulham was exact the same. The ball falls and he’s there.’
Ex-Manchester United striker Andy Cole has also delivered his verdict on struggling forward Hojlund.
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‘I think with Rasmus Hojlund, it’s been really tough for him, maybe even tougher due to the fact that he’s a young man going into United,’ Cole told OLBG.
‘Manchester United are not creating many chances, not scoring many goals, and really being thrust on the deep end, especially when you’ve got no experts to be able to play with and guide you through it.
‘I’d also find it tough in that position and I think the positive with Rasmus is he works his socks off.
‘He works extremely hard, never gives up and sometimes when you’re in that position you just need that little bit of luck. Fingers crossed he’ll be able to get that soon.’
United’s FA Cup exit means there only chance of winning silverware this season lies in the Europa League.
Amorim’s side face La Liga outfit Real Sociedad on Thursday night in the first leg of their Europa League last-16 tie.
Sociedad, managed by Imanol Alguacil, are currently just ninth in the Spanish top-flight, while Manchester United are 14th in the Premier League.
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