Mikel Obi was the last Nigerian who came close to playing for Premier League giants, Manchester United.
But that never really happened as Chelsea struck under the nose of the Red Devils to sign the Super Eagles skipper in 2005.
That’s over a decade ago now.
However, it appears that another Nigerian could feature for United’s first team sooner rather than later.
Young midfielder, Tosin Kehinde, could be set for his first involvement with Jose Mourinho’s first team after taking part in training earlier this week.
The Nigerian has been one of the best players for United’s under-23s side this season, displaying a superb consistency of quality performances.
Born in Lagos and raised in England, Kehinde first started in London with Tottenham before he was signed by the Red Devils.
The teenager played with Marcus Rashford, Axel Tuanzebe and Timothy Fosu-Mensah in the Uefa Youth League two seasons ago before he was promoted to the Reserves.
With Paul Pogba serving the third and final game of a three-match suspension for a red card received against Arsenal two weeks ago, and Marouane Fellaini injured until the New Year, Kehinde was drafting into first-team training ahead of United’s trip to West Bromwich Albion on Sunday.
A fine footballer, Kehinde isn’t a huge presence physically at 5ft 8in, but his importance to the current under-23s side cannot be understated.
Excellent footwork and passing range and vision allow him to drift wide and take players on, while also feeding balls to strikers.
Kehinde made his under-21s debut at the age of just 16 in the 2013/14 season.
He was unfortunate to miss the entire 2014/15 season through injuries and administration issues but has been impressing ever since returning, both for the under-18s and under-23s.
Pogba and Fellaini are out, and with a very busy period coming up, as well as an EFL Cup quarter-final next week, Kehinde could be involved soon and, if he does make his debut, will become the first ever Nigerian to play for United.
