Chido Obi joins Willem II on loan as Man Utd draw inspiration from Isak's breakthrough

Manchester United sealed a deadline-day loan move for 18-year-old striker Chido Obi, sending him to Eredivisie side Willem II after the teenager made eight senior appearances for the club. The move draws a direct parallel with two of European football’s most productive forwards, who each used the same Dutch club as a springboard to the top.

Alexander Isak, who became a British transfer-record signing when Liverpool purchased him from Newcastle United for £125 million last summer, spent a season on loan at Willem II from Borussia Dortmund at the age of 20. Arriving in Tilburg having struggled for regular minutes in Germany, Isak later described the spell as the most formative of his career.

“That season at Willem II was the most important season of my career,” Isak has said. “Because that step, knowing I had to deliver, it’s what made everything else possible. In football, you never know when the next chance is going to come, and so you take it. Obviously, as a young player, you need time on the pitch. If you’re not getting that, all you can do is train harder.”

Greek forward Vangelis Pavlidis followed a near-identical route, joining Willem II on loan from VfL Bochum at 20 and using the experience to define his positional identity as a centre-forward. “Willem II was very important for my career,” Pavlidis recalled. “I was still looking for my position on the pitch — at that time I wasn’t a number 9 yet. To play and score goals in the Eredivisie, to play the cup final, the European competitions, it was incredible.”

Pavlidis subsequently spent three years at AZ Alkmaar before joining Benfica in 2024, where he has scored 71 goals in 118 Liga Portugal appearances. His release clause is set at €100 million (£86 million), with Barcelona, Tottenham, Aston Villa, AC Milan, and Roma all linked with moves for the striker earlier this summer.

Obi made his United debut against Tottenham in February 2025 and scored 15 goals in 31 appearances for the Under-21 side last season. The club view him as a significant prospect, and the precedent set by Isak and Pavlidis at Willem II will do little to temper those expectations.