Newcastle United’s Danish striker William Osula is going viral for his unique running style, which is reminiscent of a certain Real Madrid superstar. The 22-year-old Dane scored a double, including the winner, in Newcastle’s 4-1 victory against third-tier Bradford City in the Carabao Cup. Recently transferred from Sheffield United, the Dane is still new to his surroundings at Tyneside, but his latest brace might elevate his position in the team sheet.
Osula, a 1.93m tall juggernaut of a player, is known for his raw physical presence. While he has not had much game time under Eddie Howe, the manager trusted him with a starting spot for the defending champions as they started their cup defence against Bradford. He repaid the faith by scoring two goals.
Eddie How was visibly content with his young striker.
“He’s done himself no harm today. That will have done him the world of good on so many different levels,” Howe told Sky Sports when asked about Osula.
“As a striker, you need to have that feeling. This was an opportunity he needed to grab and he did. It’s the same for any player, so he puts himself very much in the forefront of my thoughts.”
However, it’s not just the goalscoring that has made the highlight reels, as fans have observed a striking similarity between Osula and Kylian Mbappe..
Fans have noticed that Osula’s hunching and running reminded them of French superstar Mbappe’s method of running during his Monaco days.
Kylian Mbappe‘s rise in the footballing world came when he shot to fame in Monaco’s historic title run in Ligue 1 in the 2016/17 season, under the management of Leonardo Jardim. At just seventeen years old, he scored 15 Ligue 1 goals that season and 26 in all competitions.
One of Mbappé’s defining traits from his early days was his explosive burst behind defenses, outrunning defenders, especially when taking advantage of space behind defensive lines. He would hunch his back, get his shoulders forward, and keep his neck straight while taking long strides past defences. Even though Mbappe is not the tallest, he was around 5feet 10 inches during his teenage years, his long strides, high stamina at a breakneck speed and explosive power made him a missile that burst through defences at inhumane speeds.
Osula’s style of running with the ball at his feet was also quite similar to Mbappe.
He’s running like Monaco Mbappe for that first goal https://t.co/xIW82gbPOq
— 🌐 (@isoquince) September 25, 2025
Launching himself headfirst into two defenders, Osula uses his upper body strength to shuttle between his opponents and knock Bruno Guimaraes’ assist into the Bradford goal. While many might feel the comparison to Mbappe could be a very tall and exaggerated claim, it is never bad to do some banter regarding a young player who is taking literal strides in the game.
The Geordies are therefore, visibly excited about their new striker, who teamed up with their new signing Nick Woltemade for the second goal. After superstar Aleksander Isak’s departure to Liverpool, Eddie Howe has trusted Woltemade and Osula with the frontman duties and seems like they won’t dissapoint anyone.
Let’s see how fans reacted to the viral tweet:
Some fans quickly caught the Mbappe reference, especially with the “hunch over the ball” and “long strides”.
“That hunch over the ball….”
“Long strides, hell yeah.”
One fan reinforced his belief in Eddie Howe and commended Osula’s ability.
“Eddie Howe knows strikers. Clocked it off a cameo last season and was shocked that this was the same lad who used to play at Sheff U (Sheffield United). There is a reason he refused to let him go this summer.”
Some fans are still skeptical of his development, however.
“He’s got potential, but needs to go somewhere where he’s playing every week. That Frankfurt move woulda been good for him.”
Regardless of how Osula performs this season, here is another promising young striker in the Premier League who has bucketloads of potential. As Newcaastle United tries to go deep into more competitions, including a European stint, Osula won’t be devoid of gametime anytime soon.
