It’s not quite the same beautiful simplicity as Paul Scholes being persuaded to leave Oldham Athletic’s youth squad for Manchester United, or Ryan Giggs’ potential being spotted by an Old Trafford steward while playing for Salford Boys.
But a 16-year-old Danish striker wearing ‘9’, or sometimes ‘16’, in United’s under-18s team has been an emblem of the club’s resolve to overhaul their recruitment of young players, in the past month.
Chido Obi-Martin started scoring within five seconds of his first start for the team, against Nottingham Forest on a Saturday morning three weeks ago and completed a hattrick within 14 minutes, in a 6-0 win.