CHIDO OBI opted for a knee slide at Old Trafford hours after Ruben Amorim’s latest jab.
Obi marked his return to the starting lineup with a neat assist, helping Manchester United’s U21s secure a 2-0 victory over Borussia Dortmund.
The 17-year-old striker, who appears to have irked Amorim, stretched Diego Leon’s pass out to Gabriele Biancheri for the opener inside seven minutes.
Obi marked his assist by joining the goalscorer in a knee slide celebration.
The second was all about Biancheri’s movement after he was teed up by a sharp move from James Scanlon before putting away another low finish to beat the keeper.
The deserved victory pushes United into the top-two qualifying spaces in the group in the Premier League International Cup.
While Biancheri got the goals, it was 18-year-old Tyler Fletcher who controlled the tempo from the centre of midfield.
Fletcher’s twin brother Jack and forward Shea Lacey were missing from the line-up – a strong indication that they will join the depleted first-team for Sundays’ trip to Villa Park.
United’s goalkeeper Will Murdock, 18, pulled off a string of crucial saves sporadically as Dortmund probed.
The first saw Murdock leap into the air at full stretch from a wicked corner delivery to keep United’s lead intact.
BEST FREE BETS AND BETTING SIGN UP OFFERS
Dortmund had a chance to equalise shortly after halftime when sub Babis Drakas escaped in behind Leon, who was given a senior squad number on arrival in the summer, but let United off with a poor finish.
The German side began to up the ante when skipper Danylo Krevsun’s free-kick cannoned back off the bar.
Murdock was called upon to make another huge save to deny Drakas, who raced away in behind Leon again.
But despite the pressure from the visitors, it was United who doubled their lead in the 70th minute. Obi was replaced straight after.
Hitting on the counter, Scanlon slipped a pass through to Biancheri, who made a clever run from the outside before finishing with his weaker left foot.
Dortmund missed two sitters in the final 10 minutes before another huge save from Murdock.
Fullback Leon, who signed for around £3m from Paraguay in the summer, is clearly willing to work hard and keep improving, a trait Amorim responds well too.
Last week, when quizzed on not using academy graduate Kobbie Mainoo, Amorim used Obi and Harry Amass as examples, suggesting they were not currently at the level required for the first-team.
Both players then posted pictures on their Instagram accounts, which were subsequently deleted, seemingly in response to Amorim’s comments.
On that, Amorim added on Friday: “It’s the environment, the kids feel entitled and free to respond to the manager with a picture.
“My office is open but nobody is coming to me. That’s the way we can solve things.”
SunSport exclusively revealed that Obi and Leon could go out on loan in January, with senior experience deemed necessary for their development.
Amorim has not been spotted watching any under-21 games outside Carrington this calendar year.
The 3,124 fans in attendance forked up £10 for adult tickets and £5 for a child’s entry.
United opened the competition with a win over Athletic Club before losing 4-1 to RSC Anderlecht.
Their final match in Premier League International Cup is against Amorim’s former club Sporting.
