JJ Gabriel makes his first senior appearance
JJ Gabriel has sparked excitement among the ranks at Manchester United after making his senior debut in their pre-season win over Atletico Madrid on Saturday.
The 15-year-old came off the bench in Stockholm to play the final eight minutes of United's 2-1 comeback win.
Bryan Mbeumo may have been the match-winner, scoring a penalty and bundling in a second to complete the turnaround. But Gabriel was undoubtedly the main talking point after manager Michael Carrick brought him on to replace Mbeumo late on.
There has been a great deal of excitement around the young forward for some time, following 26 goals in 26 games in the Under-18 Premier League last season, and his potential is obvious.
Amad was quick to react after the full-time whistle.
“More to come little bro,”
wrote Amad on Instagram after the full-time whistle in a post re-shared by Gabriel himself.
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There was also some praise from United defender Leny Yoro.
“He's a really good player,”
he said.
“Still really young, still a lot to learn, a lot to improve. He's really humble, still working, so I'm happy for him to get his first minutes, so I hope for him it's going to continue like that.”
Yoro himself made his debut for Lille aged 16 and joined United for £52million, becoming the most expensive player under the age of 18 in the history of the game two years ago.
“I can see myself,”
Yoro added before offering some advice.
“[I would say] stay humble, just want to work, and this is what we need in the team, even for the young guys.
“They're all doing really well, and JJ is one of them, so I hope he's going to learn a lot, continue like that, improve, yeah. But he's really good, a good player.”
Gabriel trained with the first team last season and will hope that Carrick's presence as manager can aid his progression in the 2026/27 campaign.
With some senior players yet to return following the World Cup, there has been a youthful look to the United team in pre-season, with Gabriel one of a number of academy players hoping to catch the eye.
Shea Lacey started and won the penalty which Mbeumo converted to make it 1-1, while Jack Fletcher - a half-time substitute for Amad - intercepted the ball and provided the assist for the Cameroon international's winner.
Carrick was happy with what he saw from the mixture of young and experienced players.
“The spirit and the camaraderie is so important for the team, it’s great to see the boys getting on so naturally and enjoying each other’s company,”
he told MUTV.
“Collectively we looked strong as a team, which is always the most important thing, and individual performances seeing the young players come on to have an impact.”
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