JJ Gabriel starts new talks with another club after getting a contract offer from Man Utd
JJ Gabriel’s team has started new talks with a big European club just days after Manchester United offered the young star a contract. Gabriel hasn’t trained with United since he said he wanted to leave back in September. He even sent the club a formal letter saying he wants to become a free agent.
Back on October 8, The Guardian reported that although United offered the 16-year-old a scholarship, he’s still very likely to leave for a fee of around £350,000. If United hadn’t given him the deal, he could leave for free in January 2027. If a Premier League club wants to sign him, they’d have to agree on a fee with United or go to a special committee to decide the price. United could get about £3 million through this process plus 20% of any future transfer fees.
Gabriel’s agents have talked with top Spanish clubs Barcelona and Real Madrid, and Paris Saint-Germain is also keeping an eye on things. On October 10, German reporter Florian Plettenberg said Bayern Munich started new talks about signing Gabriel, though no official offer has been made yet. Plettenberg shared on X that Bayern hasn’t gotten a yes from Gabriel and it looks like he might prefer to move to Spain, where Real Madrid and Barcelona are the favorites.
Gabriel plans to move in January, hoping to get a European passport first. He’s trying for a Cypriot passport, but there are backup plans if that doesn’t happen. Manchester United wants to keep him, though.
According to the Manchester Evening News, Gabriel’s team made four specific requests to United, like asking to wear the number 77 shirt and to have ‘Gabriel JR’ on the back. Gabriel hasn’t played in a competitive game for United yet but did play against Atlético Madrid in pre-season.
The United manager said the club’s main concern is Gabriel’s well-being ever since news came out that he wants to leave. At a press conference on October 9, he explained why Gabriel didn’t play in the Carabao Cup game against Brighton, even though many expected his debut. Carrick said Gabriel hadn’t been around much after the City game, so plans with younger players can change. “We always have ideas for young players, whether they’re in the squad or not, but nothing was set in stone at that time,” he said.