Deco shuts down talk of Barcelona interest in Man United prodigy: ‘Not interested in any player in his situation’

Deco shuts down talk of Barcelona interest in Man United prodigy: ‘Not interested in any player in his situation’ FC Barcelona sporting director Deco has dismissed reports of the club pursuing the signing of Manchester United teenage wonderkid JJ Gabriel. The 15-year-old English prospect has made his desire to leave the Premier League giants clear and has even stopped training with the youth team. Barcelona have been heavily linked with the teenage attacking midfielder, along with their arch-rivals Real Madrid. It has even been suggested that Gabriel and his family visited the Catalan capital recently to hold talks over his future, and that Barça had eked ahead of Los Blancos in the race . Deco shuts down transfer talks However, speaking to journalist Ben Jacobs , Barcelona director Deco has moved to shut down the rumours, stating that the La Liga champions are not pursuing Gabriel currently. Deco claims Barça not pursuing JJ Gabriel. (Photo courtesy: Instagram/JJnr) “There’s nothing to say about this boy. It’s normal we always have players linked with us. There’s a huge market for that, even when they [players] are young,” he said. The former Portugal international further clarified that Barça were not involved in any way with what was happening with Gabriel and United. “We are not interested in any player in his situation. I am not sure what’s happening, and if he’s still a Manchester United player. We are not involved in that,” Deco added. “First of all, we need to understand how the situation is before we try to do something. And to speak about young, teenage players, it is not our business.” Considering the strict sanctions that FIFA imposes on clubs over irregular deals involving underage players, Deco has quickly moved to distance Barcelona from the situation. JJ Gabriel wants to leave Man United. (Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images) What next for Gabriel? Rated as one of the most exciting young prospects coming through in England, Gabriel has no shortage of suitors in the market. As already mentioned, Real Madrid are keen on signing the teenage wonderkid, while clubs like PSG and Bayern Munich are also keeping tabs on his situation. It remains to be seen where the 15-year-old starlet ends up as he has made up his mind on leaving Manchester United at the earliest possible.