- Bobb scored late at St James’ Park to seal the 3-2 win for City on the road
- The 20-year-old told reporters that Guardiola had said to ‘go ahead and score’ as a substitute
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Pep Guardiola did not have many words for Oscar Bobb when he called on him to help shape the course of a dire evening in Manchester City’s favour.
“The manager told me to come on and score,” said the 20-year-old. “Luckily I could.”
No pressure, but the confidence that Guardiola has in the Norwegian, who signed for City’s academy from Valerenga in 2019, has been clear in recent months.
He hasn’t played much, but almost none of the kids do. Still, a look at the games in which Bobb was called up from the substitutes’ bench tells a story.
Wolves away, as City chased the game. Aston Villa away as City chased the game. St James’ Park, as City chased the match.
Oscar Bobb scored in the 91st minute to snatch victory in the final for City against Newcastle
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They’ve been talking about Bobb in City for about a year. He was the star of their Under 21 team who won the league last season and won the Player of the Year award in successive campaigns.
A first goal in the Premier League will put him firmly on the map, in addition to his first Champions League goal at Red Star Belgrade last month.
And he has come a long way from Lyn in Oslo, where they called him the ‘Little Wizard’. At youth tournaments, people traveled from all over Norway to watch him.
The twenty-year-old scored for the first time in the Champions League against Red Star Belgrade
Much of Europe’s elite watched his progress and at the age of 12, Bobb chose Porto. But FIFA blocked his entry into their academy, ruling that his family had not moved to Portugal for their own profession, in a case that went to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
They lost. He returned to Norway after a period of not playing, rediscovered his love for the game after injuries and left for City. He hasn’t looked back.