Outcome of JJ Gabriel saga ‘clear’ as Man Utd to lose ‘£100m’ star with Euro giants ‘well positioned’

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·17 September 2026

Outcome of JJ Gabriel saga ‘clear’ as Man Utd to lose ‘£100m’ star with Euro giants ‘well positioned’

There is a ‘clear’ outcome to the JJ Gabriel saga after he requested to leave Premier League giants Manchester United.

Gabriel has been earmarked as a future star of world football, and it has emerged that he is looking to leave Man Utd.

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The 15-year-old and his camp have become unsettled at Man Utd, seemingly because they want him to have more opportunities in the first team after making headlines with his supreme performances at youth level.

The talented teenager has been attracting interest from top clubs across Europe, with journalist Ben Jacobs insisting that Real Madrid are currently leading the race to secure his services.

Jacobs explained: “Real Madrid are the clear frontrunners and is the club of choice, but Barcelona are also working on the deal too.

“Every single elite football club under the sun would like this player which is why it would be bitterly disappointing if Manchester United lose him.

“Real Madrid is the club of choice because they’ve got their Castilla team that gets you a lot of professional experience, they’ve got a top academy and they’ve got a manager who the player likes also.”

‘Clear direction of travel’ with JJ Gabriel revealed

Despite this, The Athletic‘s Laurie Whitwell is reporting that ‘strong efforts are underway’ at Man Utd in an attempt to make Gabriel change his mind on leaving.

However, it is said that the ‘clear direction of travel’ is that Gabriel is going to leave Man Utd, with ‘some in the industry speculate United are seeing a future £100million ($135m) player slip through their fingers’.

On his next move, the report explains:

‘Real Madrid are well-positioned as they work on a deal, while Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich are also making overtures. ‘United had hoped Gabriel would continue his career with them, and strong efforts are underway to convince him to stay, but the direction of travel is clear. Gabriel has not been seen at Carrington, their training complex, since he scored a hat-trick for the under-19s in the UEFA Youth League last Thursday, and as things stand there is no expectation of a return.’

Speaking on Gabriel’s situation, Man Utd legend Gary Neville argued that the forward has been handled poorly.

Neville said: “But I just don’t see the logic from any representatives of a 15-year-old boy who think it’s a good idea to put his name in lights right now.

“You want to try and sort of douse the flames, don’t you?

“You don’t want to add fuel to a fire when you have got basically…”

Arsenal legend Ian Wright responded: “You want to keep him under cover.”

Neville continued: “Max Dowman, if you remember last year when he came on, you know, Sky probably asked for an interview at the end of the game.

“Arsenal said no.

“They got him straight back into the changing room.

“He’s back at school on the Monday morning.”