JJ Gabriel’s rise is phenomenal but Man Utd and Carrick are doing the right thing by playing down the hype

THE LOUDEST cheer during Manchester United’s pre-season friendly in Stockholm was reserved for a 15-year-old. It was typical of Michael Carrick that he ensured JJ Gabriel’s entrance was as low-key as possible, treating him no differently from fellow arrival Jim Thwaites. JJ Gabriel came on for the last ten minutes of the win over Atletico Credit: Getty He shares a hug with Bryan Mbeumo as the double scorer comes off Credit: Getty The Strawberry Arena holds 50,000 and it was roughly half-full. The atmosphere was not far removed from the soulless matches during the Covid-19 pandemic but everyone inside the bowl was clearly aware of who Gabriel is. It was their privilege to watch him cross the white line against Atletico Madrid in the 82nd minute. Sign up for the Man United newsletter Thank you! The game did not pass Gabriel by, either. He drew a foul and had a shot blocked from inside the area. When he walked through the mixed zone afterwards, Gabriel was flanked by Luke Shaw, doubling almost as a minder. Leny Yoro said of Gabriel: “He’s a really good player. Still really young, still a lot to learn, a lot to improve. “But yeah, 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 was a teen prodigy at Lille, debuting at the age of 16. He admitted: “I can see myself, because I 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. Most read in Sport “So I hope he’s going to learn a lot, continue like that, improve, yeah. But he’s really good, a good player.” BEST FREE BETS AND BETTING SIGN UP OFFERS United’s squad against Atletico was more streamlined. Plenty of youngsters who had travelled to Helsinki and Trondheim in the previous weeks spent their Friday nights playing with the under-21s in Altrincham. Chido Obi, once the flavour of the month, was one of them. Toby Collyer, a 22-year-old, is literally too old for the under 21s. The writing is on the wall for those academy products. They will be sold or loaned this summer. For United, they have to continue their sales pitch to Gabriel, his family and his advisers. He cannot sign a professional contract until he turns 17 in October 2027. There is bound to be some resentment at academy level over the privileges Gabriel is enjoying. Those who have watched him regularly on the Carrington training pitches will argue he is worth the investment. United are bending over backwards to ensure Gabriel commits his long-term future to them, particularly given the intense interest from Barcelona. Coincidentally, Gabriel spent a chunk of his summer in Catalonia. He is a Nike client and they dubbed him a “future Nike icon” at the age of 14. Nike recently commissioned a painting of Gabriel, replete with their swoosh. Barcelona, of course, are sponsored by Nike. Ruben Amorim invited Gabriel to train with the first team. Carrick did likewise before adding him to the squad against Rosenborg in United’s second pre-season friendly last month. Gabriel was an unused substitute in Trondheim Credit: Getty The youngster has been training with the first team since last season Credit: Getty Gabriel’s cheerleaders have already hailed him as the youngest ever United debutant, ignoring the fact that the Atletico friendly does not count. David Gaskell still holds that record at 16 years and 19 days old from when he came on in the 1956 Charity Shield. Gabriel turns 16 on October 6 and the League Cup fourth round is the week commencing October 26. The third round is in September. Those dates are possibly circled in red ink on Gabriel’s calendar, if he is deemed remotely ready to debut. His development is truly phenomenal and comparable with Max Dowman at Arsenal. Thomas Tuchel refused to rule out the possibility of including Dowman in his World Cup squad and it is a matter of time until Gabriel is on his lips. There was a danger Gabriel could be remembered as the kid who posed for an ‘unveiling’ photo with Cristiano Ronaldo’s son. Gabriel is 11 days older than Cristiano Junior, in Al Nassr’s academy. Downplaying Gabriel’s achievement would be wise. The calm Carrick is the ideal mentor to manage the hype and it was telling that MUTV did not ask him about Gabriel’s cameo in their post-match chat. Thwaites, a team-mate of Gabriel’s in last season’s run to the FA Youth Cup final, was making his maiden senior appearance at the same time in Sweden. So United’s social media accounts celebrated the academy team-mates simultaneously. Low key. United showed admirable restraint on their website. There is no separate story on Gabriel’s appearance and no mention of him in their match report. Gabriel’s father has not celebrated his appearance on his Twitter account and deleted recent posts trumpeting his son. Gabriel turns 16 in October and could break the record for United’s youngest ever debutant Credit: Getty Gabriel joined United in 2021 and they are now trying to convince him to stay Credit: Getty There are cases where the indulgence is excessive. Social media content collaborations to fuel the following and 77 is Gabriel’s squad number. He is not old enough to learn to drive but is old enough to cultivate a growing brand. United have a duty of care. Their academy head, Stephen Torpey, has posed for signing pictures with scholars as young as eight in a suite at Old Trafford. There are innumerable examples of too much, too young in football. “He’s got good abilities and we try to help him to get good,” Bryan Mbeumo succinctly said. Less is more. Comment now