Real Madrid to sign Arsenal-linked Manchester United wonderkid

Real Madrid to sign Arsenal-linked Manchester United wonderkid JJ Gabriel is set to sign for Real Madrid in January, with Arsenal seemingly fading from the race quite a while before the youngster’s final decision. Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images David Ornstein reported for The Athletic earlier this week that Manchester United youngster JJ Gabriel is expected to join Real Madrid in the January transfer window. The deal is not yet done, but it is reportedly very advanced, and Gabriel will sign a long-term contract with his new club. Arsenal had been linked with the player in the past, but The Athletic claim the strongest interest came from Barcelona , Paris-Saint Germain , Bayern Munich , and obviously Real Madrid. Manchester United also made a serious effort to keep the player. Photo via Marca / SERGIO RODRÍGUEZ C. Gabriel himself isn’t hiding the fact he’s close to a move to Madrid, posing for a photo (shown above) holding a Marca newspaper reporting that he’s on the verge of the transfer. Arsenal were always on the back foot in this race, as Gabriel’s attempts to terminate his contract hinged on the idea that he would be leaving the country to go to Europe once he turned 16. The Gunners’ only real hope was that they could point to the chances they’d given Max Dowman , suggesting Gabriel could get similar opportunities in the Arsenal first-team. But that seemingly wasn’t enough. Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images Before his fall-out with Manchester United, the club were reportedly planning to include Gabriel in their senior squad to face Brighton and Hove Albion in the League Cup. But by the time the match actually came around, the relationship between the club and the player’s camp was already seemingly unsalvageable. Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images