Arabic version: مسار جاي جاي غابرييل في مانشستر يونايتد يلفت الأنظار
According to BBC News, Manchester United’s 15-year-old forward JJ Gabriel is continuing his development while attracting attention through his performances for the club’s youth sides and his training involvement with the first team. Head coach Michael Carrick said Gabriel had trained with the senior squad “quite a bit” and was physically adapting to each step.
Gabriel made an eye-catching Premier League 2 debut against Ipswich at Leigh Sports Village, scoring with a scooped finish after running on to Jack Fletcher’s through ball. He followed that with another goal after receiving Tynan Thompson’s pass with his back to goal, turning, beating defenders and firing low into the net. Footage of the latter goal has been viewed millions of times across social media accounts.
The forward featured on Manchester United’s pre-season trips and made a late substitute appearance against Atletico Madrid in Stockholm. His first involvement in that match resulted in a challenge from Atletico and Uruguay defender Jose Maria Gimenez. United have also shared training footage showing Gabriel with first-team players, including fellow forward Benjamin Sesko.
Gabriel cannot turn 16 until 6 October. A first-team appearance before then would make him Manchester United’s youngest-ever player, surpassing goalkeeper David Gaskell, who was 16 years and 19 days old on his senior debut. United face Brighton in the EFL Cup third round at Old Trafford on 16 September, while a Champions League match against Sabah FK offers 11 substitute places rather than nine in domestic competition. Gabriel did not train with the first team on Wednesday.
His potential route could instead include the Under-19 Uefa Youth League, which United’s academy is prioritising after withdrawing from the EFL Trophy and National League Cup this season. A Premier League 2 derby at Manchester City was postponed because of United’s Thursday European commitments, leaving Brentford at Leigh on 18 September as the last league fixture before the international break.
