Real Madrid are closing in on signing Manchester United wonderkid JJ Gabriel and are looking to avoid repeating the mistake they made with Martin Odegaard. The youngster is poised to join the La Liga giants after requesting to quit the club.
Gabriel has been absent from Carrington since his camp demanded his registration be cancelled. While United rejected that request, he has since secured a European Union passport, clearing the path for him to join a club in mainland Europe.
Real Madrid lead the race
Real are leading the race to sign the youngster, who also drew attention from other European heavyweights, including Barcelona, Bayern Munich and PSG. If finalised, the transfer would mirror Odegaard's switch to the Bernabeu as a 15-year-old.
Everyone involved will be hoping it works out better than that, considering the Norwegian managed just 11 first-team outings for Real amid multiple loans before ultimately moving to Arsenal in 2021 and becoming a title-winner.
Odegaard's struggles at the Bernabeu
Odegaard wasn't wanted by then-boss Carlo Ancelotti, who labelled the signing a "PR exercise" by club president Florentino Perez. He was also afforded minimal playing time under Zinedine Zidane.
Spanish journalist Guillem Balague reckons Los Blancos will have taken lessons from that saga as they prepare to bring in Gabriel. Speaking on Match of the Day, Balague said Real hope not to alienate his team-mates by giving him a first-term contract but making him train with their B side, as was the case with Odegaard.
Gabriel's absence from United
That caused tensions for the young Norwegian, whose peers would supposedly refuse to pass him the ball in training given he wouldn't be playing with them at the weekend.
United still retain Gabriel's registration, despite the player failing to return to Old Trafford or Carrington since departing after scoring a hat-trick against Sabah in the UEFA Youth League in September. The club's subsequent efforts to contact his family about his well-being have been ignored.
Gabriel was poised to become United's youngest-ever first-team player against Brighton in the Carabao Cup, only to be withdrawn from the club three weeks before he turned 16, with his family dissatisfied with his development plan.
They had insisted that Gabriel appear against Sabah in the Champions League and the Carabao Cup, while also making his Premier League debut. He would've become United's youngest-ever player.
