Oboavwoduo double sees City go seven points clear at the top of the Under-18s Premier League.

Joel Ndala found the breakthrough early in the first half after finishing calmly into the net.

Soon into the second half it was two as Isaiah Dada-Mascoll headed in from a free kick, then a double from Justin Oboavwoduo firmly cemented our lead.

Forest’s Connor Brown got sent off with ten minutes to play.

Another two goals were added to the scoreline, with Farid Alfa-Ruprecht and Oboavwoduo grabbing his brace.

WHAT HAPPENED

It was a chilly day in Manchester as City entered the pitch hoping to extend our winning run in 2023.

It was Ben Wilkinson’s side who started on the front foot.

Nico O’Reilly did well to regain possession in the midfield before he played through Joel Ndala who could only fire straight into the palms of Aaron Bott in the Forest goal.

Our electric start to the game continued, Ashton Muir placed the ball into the box, then Ndala had to fix his feet before firing over.

Within the 15-minute mark, we broke the deadlock.

O’Reilly again, won the ball back and laid it off to Ndala, who curled the ball over the Forest keeper and into the net to give us a deserved lead.

The visitors responded quickly, as Jack Nadin struck from outside the box which forced a save from George Murray-Jones.

Nice work by Muir and Jacob Wright resulted in the later putting in a cross that landed with O’Reilly who slipped on his shot, with calls for a penalty waved away by the officials.

A free kick was awarded to Forest and as it was hooked in the air, Joe Gardner hit it on the half volley and brought a superb save Murray-Jones to again deny the visitors.

Our young outfit started the second half like the first, pushing Forest back and trying to play sequences to carve and create chances.

This pressure was made to count as we made it two.

Matty Whittingham crossed in a sublime free kick which landed on Isaiah Dada-Mascoll’s head who was on his own to send the ball away from the keeper.

Moments later the ball landed with Justin Oboavwoduo inside the box and his half volley fired into the back of the net to give his a firm lead in the game.

Michael Okeke was close to making it four, but his goal was denied by the assistant referee’s flag.

After a bust-up in the centre circle, Forest’s Connor Brown was shown another yellow card and given his marching orders to put the visitors down to 10 men.

City were still in the mood for scoring, as Farid Alfa-Ruprecht with a fine run into the box through, he evaded all challenges before striking the ball into the net.

Oboavwoduo scored his brace late on, after a cross from Alfa-Ruprecht rolled to him in the box as he guided the ball into the back of the net.

HOW WE LINED UP

George Murray-Jones was selected between the posts, with a back four of Jacob Wright, Jahmai Simpson-Pusey, Max Alleyne and Matty Whittingham protecting him.

Isaiah Dada-Mascoll was sat in front of the defence, with Michael Okeke and Nico O’Reilly playing further ahead in the engine room.

Ashton Muir and Joel Ndala were positioned on the flanks, with Justin Oboavwoduo playing up top with the No.9 shirt.

Manchester City Under-18s

XI: Murray-Jones, Wright, Simpson-Pusey, Alleyne, Whittingham (68’ Naylor), Okeke, Dada-Mascoll, O’Reilly (C) (68’ Harrison), Muir (68’ Alfa-Ruprecht), Oboavwoduo, Ndala

SUBS: Grant, Gray

Nottingham Forest Under-18s

XI: Bott, Clarke, Gbopo, Lister, Robinson, Anijsko, Perry (71’ Modupe), McAdam, Nadin (27’ Adueni), Gardner (71’ Flanagan), Brown

SUBS: Willows, Hemmings

WHAT IT MEANS

A win for our under-18s stretched our lead at the top of the league to seven points, with Sunderland in second having three games in hand on us.

It is our fourth win on the bounce in all competitions, with us scoring 18 and conceding just once.

WHAT’S NEXT

City face an away trip to Lancashire next Saturday, as we take on Blackburn Rovers in the Under-18s Premier League North.

Kick off is scheduled for 11:00 (UK) at Brockhall.

The game is available to watch live on CITY+ and Recast.