Man United face Europa League striker crisis as starlet Chido Obi is ineligible to play in remaining fixtures after club failed to register the teenager

Ruben Amorim has been handed a fresh blow as 17-year-old academy striker Chido Obi is not eligible to face Real Sociedad in Thursday’s Europa League last-16 clash.

Manchester United’s squad is already threadbare and Amorim has come to rely on the teenager to provide him with an attacking option off the bench, which had two empty spots against Fulham on Sunday, such is the mounting injury crisis.

Obi came on and made a real impact in Sunday’s FA Cup and almost scored the winner for United in extra-time, forcing a brilliant save out of Bernd Leno.

But he will play no part against Real Sociedad in Spain on Thursday night due to not being registered in United’s squad.

European squads are split between an A List and a B List, neither of which feature Obi.

United submitted their initial Europa League squad back in September, before Obi’s move from Arsenal had been officially ratified.

It’s another blow for manager Ruben Amorim whose attacking options are limited as it is

Obi looked sharp against Fulham on Sunday, forcing this excellent save from Bernd Leno

A revised list was submitted to UEFA last month with Patrick Dorgu, a January arrival from Lecce, and 18-year-old Ayden Heaven, who joined from Arsenal, added to United’s A List.

Fans speculated whether Obi, due to his age, would therefore be allowed to feature on the B List, a section of the squad list reserved typically for academy products.

But he does not qualify with UEFA rules reading that only ‘club-trained players born on or after January 1, 2003, who have been with their employers for an uninterrupted period of a minimum of two years, are allowed to be considered for selection’ on the B-List.

It remains to be seen whether Obi will still travel with the first team squad as part of his integration into the group but it is considered unlikely given the team will train in Manchester on Wednesday morning before flying out.

It also leaves Amorim with a real headache ahead of Thursday night given his only alternative striker option, Rasmus Hojlund, is 18 consecutive games without a goal.

The Dane’s confidence looks to be at an all-time low but with no Obi in the picture, Amorim is going to have to turn to Hojlund.

The 22-year-old has not scored since a brace against Viktoria Plzen in the Europa League back in December and his head coach will hope this competition can end his goal drought and spark life back into his season.