There are few players in living memory who garnered as much excitement as Manchester United academy starlet JJ Gabriel.
At just 14 years of age, Gabriel has already played for the Red Devils’ Under-18’s, scoring twice on his debut last season, and is expected to be a “central piece” of Darren Fletcher’s side this season, according to the Daily Mail.
The England U-15 international is widely considered the standout prospect in his age group and the player with the “greatest potential” in United’s academy.
There was intense interest in Gabriel from the Europe’s elite with Bayern Munich, Barcelona and Real Madrid, among others, all making advances to sign the youngster as his contract was set to expire this summer.
But a “crucial intervention” by sporting director Jason Wilcox convinced Gabriel and his family to commit his future to Old Trafford and a new two-year deal was agreed.
A star in the making
United are evidently aware of the prodigious talent they have in their ranks – and are acting according to that skillset, rather than Gabriel’s age.
For the season opener against Arsenal on Sunday, which United ultimately lost 1-0 despite outplaying their north London rivals, Gabriel was invited into the director’s box at Old Trafford, alongside Jayden Ngwashi – a 16-year-old defender also held in high esteem by academy coaches.
Christopher Vivell, the club’s director of recruitment, took time to speak to both youngsters and their family members during the match, the Daily Mail reports.
United even handed Gabriel the highest squad number in the club’s history – 95 – with the previous record being 87, worn by defender Godwill Kukonki.
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Alfie Brooks, a specialist one-on-one coach for Gabriel, believes the 14-year-old is the “best” talent he has even seen and is better technically than senior Premier League stars.
“I’ve coached nearly 1,000 academy players over my time – four of them in Josh Nichols (Arsenal), Josh Acheampong (Chelsea), Sydie Peck (Sheffield United) and Tyrique George (Chelsea) have made their senior debuts – and JJ is the best I’ve ever seen.
“He could go into a Premier League changing room right now and technically he would be better than all of them. It wouldn’t even be close,” Brooks concludes.
Gabriel’s talent is almost undeniable at this stage – and it’s even caught the attention of the most important figure at Old Trafford, Ruben Amorim.
Catching Amorim’s eye
The Daily Mail reveals Amorim has taken a “keen interest” in Gabriel after his impressive performances for the U-18 side.
During the first-team’s pre-season tour of the United States, Amorim requested clips of Gabriel to watch to be “kept updated” by staff on his progress.
It’s an extraordinary step for a manager to take such steps for a 14-year-old – but Gabriel is no ordinary 14-year-old, and United’s head coach knows that better than anyone.
Featured image Alex Livesey via Getty Images
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Darragh Fox
Darragh is a writer for The Peoples Person who spent three years as a history graduate slowly realising football was by far the most interesting thing to write about.
