Top Manchester United academy prospect JJ Gabriel asks to leave club

Manchester United has been rocked by the news that one of its brightest prospects JJ Gabriel has asked to leave the club.

The 15-year-old youth player was the club's Academy Player of the Year last season and is regarded as one of the hottest talents in his age group in Europe.

A person with knowledge of the situation said United was unclear why Gabriel wanted to leave and that the club remained hopeful the situation could be rectified.

The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment publicly.

Gabriel, who is a striker, was due to be included in United's first team squad for the first time in a competitive match for Wednesday's English League Cup fixture against Brighton.

Just last week, United greats Ryan Giggs and Rio Ferdinand spoke of Gabriel, describing him as an immense talent.

"He's good off both feet, ridiculous, getting a yard and just bang. So small, so slight, doesn't allow people to make contact," Ferdinand said.

Giggs added: "I think he is sort of a generational talent."

Gabriel was named the Under-18 Premier League Player of the Year last year, scoring 20 goals in just 21 appearances. He started this season with a bang, scoring a hat-trick when making his UEFA Youth League debut against Sabah.

Speaking after that 5-0 win, Adam Lawrence, who coaches the youth team, said: "JJ is surrounded by people that really, really believe in him, from the top of the club right the way through.

"He's been at the club for so long. He's got real good relationships with the players, with the staff, so I think over the course of time, obviously, that helps as well.

"At the moment, just in terms of his game, his games program, his training program, it's about making sure that he's getting the right exposure across different levels."

United is famed for developing homegrown talent like Giggs, David Beckham and Marcus Rashford.

Ferdinand and Giggs spoke before news of Gabriel's request to leave.

Speaking on Ferdinand's The Debrief podcast, Giggs said the teenager was at "the best club because (of) the history of young players coming through and how they're looked after".

Madrid move?

A source has told website 101 Great Goals that Gabriel could be looking to join Real Madrid in October should he end up leaving Old Trafford.

It is believed Gabriel has made the request to leave because of an approach from the La Liga giant.

The Premier League club is not obliged to accept the request and has to sanction Gabriel's departure for the move to proceed.

But United's hands are somewhat tied, because it cannot sign Gabriel on professional terms until he is 17 years of age, nor make him a scholar until his 16th birthday on Oct 6.

That has opened the door for Madrid to make its move and exploit a loophole that allows it to sign players aged between 16 and 18 from a fellow European Union country.

Gabriel holds an Irish passport, making him eligible.

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