Manchester United have invested heavily in rebuilding Michael Carrick’s squad during a significant period of change at Old Trafford.
The club focused heavily on midfield recruitment after Casemiro’s departure, bringing in Carlos Baleba, Andrey Santos and Youri Tielemans.
United also sanctioned several exits, with Rasmus Hojlund joining Napoli while Jadon Sancho and Tyrell Malacia departed.
Carrick’s reshaped side have collected four points from their opening four Premier League matches this season.
A 2-0 defeat against Hull City preceded a 5-2 victory over Ipswich Town and a 2-2 draw with Everton.
United then suffered a narrow Manchester derby defeat, although their Champions League campaign started with a 4-0 victory over Sabah FK.
However, the club are now facing an unexpected situation involving one of the leading prospects from their academy.
According to The Telegraph, 15-year-old JJ Gabriel has formally asked to leave Manchester United and terminate his contract.
The request comes less than a week after Gabriel scored a UEFA Youth League hat-trick against Sabah.
That performance made him the youngest United player to score a hat-trick in the competition, according to the report.
United had also considered including Gabriel in Carrick’s squad for Wednesday’s Carabao Cup match against Brighton.
However, those plans now appear unlikely to proceed following the youngster’s request to leave Old Trafford.
United previously convinced Gabriel to stay last summer after he considered leaving, with Jason Wilcox and Matt Hargreaves intervening.
His current contract runs until the end of this season, and United believe they could still resolve the situation.
Barcelona have pursued Gabriel for several years, while his Irish passport would allow him to move abroad when he turns 16.
Gabriel had also recently removed his Manchester United references and photographs from his Instagram account.
United must now determine whether they can persuade the highly rated academy prospect to reconsider his request.
Want to get the latest transfer news direct to your phone? Join our WhatsApp community by clicking here.
