Photo by James Gill - Danehouse/Getty Images
Photo by James Gill - Danehouse/Getty Images
Andy Mitten has shared what he has learned about JJ Gabriel from his coaches and it speaks volumes about the Manchester United youth academy product.
Manchester United are now in a race to avoid losing JJ Gabriel at the end of the season after the 15-year-old forward expressed his desire to leave Old Trafford.
Gabriel is out of contract with Man Utd in the summer, but the Red Devils talent will turn 16 in October and will be eyeing up different scholarship schemes now.
Dubbed ‘Kid Messi,’ the United forward has caught the eye of Paris Saint-Germain, Barcelona, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich amid the ongoing saga over his future.
READ MORE: JJ Gabriel’s decision to quit Old Trafford added to Gary Neville’s theory that links to former Man Utd star
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Andy Mitten explains that JJ Gabriel’s attitude and talent have always stood out, despite the drama around him now
JJ Gabriel has been making a name for himself in the Manchester United youth academy and trained with the first-team squad under both Michael Carrick and Ruben Amorim. The United striker also had a chance to feature in pre-season under Michael Carrick ahead of the 2026-27 Premier League season.
Speaking on The Athletic’s Talk of the Devils podcast, Andy Mitten made it clear that the consensus around Gabriel’s character and playing ability has been made well clear by those who are familiar with him as a footballer.
“I’ve spoken to multiple people who’ve coached him and worked with him and everyone says he’s a nice kid,” he said.
“He’s excellent for his age. He scores a lot of goals. I asked his coaches for a technical perspective.
“They say he’s quick, he’s two-footed, he loves to score. He stays behind after training. All about scoring, scoring.”
READ MORE: 12 months apart, Michael Carrick was forced to repeat same Ruben Amorim ‘trick’ that summed up Man Utd defeat
The promising signs around Gabriel as a long-term talent at Old Trafford had always dominated the narrative around him until this week’s news emerged around his future. Instead, the different rumblings around his family situation and United have started to overshadow what he has done so far at Old Trafford.
But at the heart of the story is a 15-year-old kid who has earned the respect of those who have worked with him and not seen anything to question his desire to develop into a talented player. Even outside of Gabriel’s coaches, non-footballing figures have seen nothing but positives around the Red Devils forward.
“You know, I didn’t get any red flags when I spoke to people,” Mitten explained.
“And I’ve seen him with my own eyes about him as a young footballer or as a young person.”
Whatever the differences might be between United and Gabriel’s camp should always remain the focal point of the fallout rather than the player himself. It remains quite clear that the Red Devils want to keep the teenager at Old Trafford.