Alexander Isak witnessed Manchester United youth star J.J. Gabriel celebrate after his Under-18s defeated Liverpool at home on Saturday afternoon.
Manchester United youngster JJ Gabriel imitated Alexander Isak’s trademark celebration after scoring a hat-trick in a 7-0 thrashing of Liverpool’s Under-18s. It happened three times for the 15-year-old sensation as United’s youth team crushed their Merseyside rivals away.
His standout attack came with a mesmerizing run down the right flank, past several Liverpool defenders and into the net. The teenager then drove away, pointing over his shoulder. Isaac’s characteristic movements after finding the back of the goal were accurately reproduced.
The Swedish striker has not performed any such special celebrations recently, but he attracted considerable attention for orchestrating one after scoring after leapfrogging Virgil van Dijk in Newcastle’s Carabao Cup match against Liverpool. Gabriel has certainly earned the right to taunt his opponents after scoring three times this season, taking his tally to 10 goals.
read more: Arne Slott agrees with Liverpool over Alexander Isak and Hugo Ekitike puzzleread more: The real feelings as stars point and talk about Arne Slott’s sack in the Liverpool dressing room
Darren Fletcher’s side moved up to third place following their resounding victory, ending a disappointing five-game winless run. Despite Gabriel’s young age, Ruben Amorim is well aware of the youngster’s talent, having witnessed it first hand during a senior training session last month.
“Like everyone, I know that he is a really talented player. We try to choose talented players for training, not just so that I know what tomorrow will be like, but so that they can feel what it means to be in the first team, the difficulty of playing against defenders, the difficulty and pace of training,” Amorim said.
“If we can take advantage of all the training we need and show the kids what they need to do to get here, that’s important for everyone, not just JJ.”
Gabriel could break into the first team straight away given his talent, but United are likely to be cautious with his development. If he had been a few years older, it is very likely that he would have already made his first-team debut.
Amad and Brian Mbeumo are due to head to AFCON soon, while Benjamin Sesko will be out for the next few weeks with an injury. Matheus Cunha also missed Monday’s defeat to Everton after picking up an issue in training, but is expected to return for next week’s game against West Ham at Old Trafford.
These two forced absences meant that forgotten star Joshua Zirkzee started the entire game against Everton, with Shai Lacey also on the bench. The latter is also a highly regarded young player in the academy.
He played in eight games for the U-21 team in Premier League 2 and the EFL Trophy, contributing five goals. The 18-year-old is another young attacker that Amorim commented on.
“I’m really happy for him,” he said before the game against Everton. “He struggled a little bit with the injury, but they’ve done a really good job of balancing his body and you can feel that he can manage more loads during training.
“He has a lot of talent, but when he comes here the speed feels completely different, so they need to spend more time with us and prepare because our training is hard.”
“They need to be ready because the pressure is more intense in Premier League matches. When you call a kid into the first team, they need to behave really well. This connection is really important. We are putting everything in place. We will also have an academy nutritionist at the club from now on.”
“That’s what should be fundamental. Because we’re doing all these things, I spend more time with them and have more confidence in them. I think when we get these kids playing in the Premier League, they’re going to struggle, but they’re going to struggle less.”
Join our new WhatsApp community and receive Mirror Football content every day. Community members also receive special offers, promotions, and advertisements from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check it out whenever you like. If you are interested, please read our privacy notice.
Sky Sports Premier League and EFL package discounts
£49
£35
sky
Get the deal here
Sky has reduced the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle ahead of the 2025/26 season, saving members £336 on their bill and offering more than 1,400 live matches from Premier League, EFL and more.
Sky will broadcast at least 215 live Premier League matches next season, with an increase of up to 100 more.
