The elite of European football have been put on high alert after Manchester United wonderkid JJ Gabriel stunned the club by requesting to leave.
In news that shocked senior figures at Old Trafford, the 15-year-old and his team instead sent a formal request to have his registration at the club cancelled with immediate effect to become a free agent.
United are expected to reject the request mid-season and believe there is plenty of time for the situation to be resolved. Several sources have also claimed the move could be a play by Gabriel’s father, Joe O’Cearuill, to get his son a better contract.
As a result, The i Paper has been told rivals Real Madrid and Barcelona are prepared to do battle for Gabriel’s signature. United’s ultimate nightmare could still play out, with Manchester City understood to be monitoring the situation.
Another source insisted City are somewhat reluctant to sign “superstar” players with baggage like Gabriel has, but the chance to snare arguably United’s greatest-ever academy player is just too great an opportunity to pass up.
More suitors are expected to join the race for a free agent of Gabriel’s talent, should he become available for free at the end of the season.
Why Gabriel wants to leave
Gabriel’s bombshell is understood to be down to a lack of game time, both in pre-season and since the campaign started, with his father, Joe, thought to be the one who is particularly unhappy that other youngsters, such as Shea Lacey, have been preferred for first-team action.
O’Cearuill is a journeyman footballer himself, having briefly played for Arsenal and represented the Republic of Ireland twice. Both he and his son have deleted the majority of their content on social media in the last week, with Gabriel’s Instagram currently blank and any mention of United taken away.
Gabriel became JJ Gabriel to become more “marketable” as a footballer – part of his father’s drive to push his talented son to stardom.
Despite all the hype, Gabriel was not included in the A-list for Champions League participation and featured for eight minutes for the first-team in pre-season. Sources at United, however, believe not much more could have been done to show a pathway through to the senior team for the young starlet.
Gabriel almost left the club last summer, with a move to Barcelona appearing on the horizon, before CEO Omar Berrada and director of football Jason Wilcox stepped in to persuade the teenager and his father that United could map out his pathway to the top.
United’s academy issues
United’s academy is famed for producing some of the club’s greatest-ever players, from Ryan Giggs to Kobbie Mainoo. It remains an enormous source of pride that the club has had an academy graduate in every matchday squad since 1937 – something they have added to their teamsheet graphic ahead of matches this season.
Yet in recent years, there has been a feeling that some youngsters have been getting a chance at United due to the club’s “obsession” with youth – not because the players are good enough.
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Harry Amass and Lacey were both handed their Champions League debuts against supposed more navigable opposition that could have seen Gabriel be handed his chance against.
We will now never know whether Gabriel’s moment would have come against Brighton in Wednesday’s Carabao Cup encounter, as he has been removed from the squad list. Any future United first-team involvement will only happen if his long-term future is resolved.
After the start to the season United have had, battling to hang onto their most prized youth asset is not exactly ideal. They had plans to see Gabriel banging in goals for years to come. They won’t give up on these dreams that easily.
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