Omari Forson: Who is Man Utd teenager replacing Rasmus Hojlund against Fulham?

Rasmus Hojlund may have discovered his scoring touch but Erik ten Hag was reluctant to hail the Dane as Manchester United's "main man".

"I don't see it that way," the stern-faced Dutchman insisted when Hojlund was framed in such lofty terms. Yet, the free-scoring 21-year-old is unquestionably United's main striker.

With Anthony Martial taking up his usual spot in the treatment room, Ten Hag admitted that he would have to get "a little bit creative" if Hojlund also pulled up. After racking up eight goals in as many matches, Hojlund duly sustained a calf injury, robbing Ten Hag of his non-main man.

Rather than turn to Antony, a player that Ten Hag pushed to sign for £85m, United's manager handed a maiden Premier League start to Omari Forson for the visit of Fulham on Saturday afternoon.

In fairness, the 19-year-old did boast more top-flight assists this season than his Brazilian counterpart despite playing a grand total of five minutes ahead of his full debut. Here's everything you need to know about Hojlund's surprise stand-in.

YouTube star

When Lionel Messi's father was searching for a club willing to fund the growth hormone treatment for his son, he got the camera out. Little Lionel managed 113 keepie-uppies with an orange and 140 with a tennis ball although he could barely break double digits when a ping-pong ball was tossed his way. The tape eventually found its way into the hands of the agent Josep Maria Minguella, who facilitated Messi's move to Barcelona.

Whether the Forson family knew Messi's backstory or not, they took the same approach. Footage of Omari has proliferated YouTube since he turned six.

Forson was filmed juggling an ordinary football 100 times in his back garden and in action on the pitch. The ball practically comes up to his knee while weaving between the seams of his billowing jersey in a video with a title comparing the child to Messi. It would not be the last time a premature comparison was made.

Childhood transfer target

Forson was regularly decked out in West Ham apparel while posing in front of the camera in his youth. A Hammer since the age of five, Forson was incredibly the subject of admiring glances from other clubs since his ninth birthday.

In one report from the Daily Mail, Forson - who, remember, was in year 5 at the time - was compared to Zlatan Ibrahimovic, apparently without any hint of irony.

The London-born winger did move to Tottenham Hotspur's youth system before making the switch to Manchester United in 2019. Arsenal were thought to be sniffing around the left-footer but couldn't tempt Forson back to the capital.

Headline hat-trick

Tom Huddlestone turned 21 in the same year the first iPhone launched but was lining up for Manchester United's youth group when Forson announced himself to a wider audience in February 2023.

With his player-coach spraying the ball around from the centre circle, Forson proved too much for Everton's under-21s, rattling in a hat-trick at Leigh Sports Village. In a throwback to yesteryear, the left-footed Forson favours the left wing. The teenager opened his account with a swipe across goal but is comfortable letting rip with his right side as well, doubling his personal tally in the second half off his weaker side before completing his hat-trick from 12 yards.

Forson had already trained with United's first team by that point but certainly helped his case for more senior minutes with a landmark outing.

Fiery pre-season

Forson was part of a young core that Ten Hag took to the US for United's pre-season tour last summer. Featuring in six of the club's eight fixtures, Forson started against Bundesliga giants Borussia Dortmund in Las Vegas. Yet, his match only lasted 36 minutes.

Ten Hag saved the youngster from himself more than anything after Forson picked up an early yellow card and tangled with Karim Adeyemi off the ball. "When there is a VAR, he gets sent off," Ten Hag admitted.

The teenager had to be consoled by his colleagues on the bench but he was back in the United team which defeated Lens 3-1 at Old Trafford the following week.

Contract uncertainty

Despite featuring heavily for United in pre-season, Forson had to wait until January to make his competitive debut in the final seconds of the FA Cup third round against Wigan Athletic.

Forson made his Premier League debut against Wolverhampton Wanderers in February - laying the ball off ahead of Kobbie Mainoo's dramatic stoppage-time winner - but rumours of unrest had already surfaced by then.

At the end of January, the Daily Mail - the same publication that likened him to Ibrahimovic as a six-year-old - claimed that Forson had refused to sign an extension to his contract which expires in June.

For a player who first appeared in the transfer gossip columns in primary school, speculation over his future is nothing new.

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