Ruben Amorim's got 15-year-old who's BANNED from playing training with Man Utd first-team

View 2 Images

Manchester United's highly-rated youngster, JJ Gabriel, has been spotted training with the first team ahead of their upcoming match. The 15-year-old prodigy is one of five academy stars who have been given the opportunity to train with Ruben Amorim 's squad.

The Portuguese head coach is gearing up his team for Sunday afternoon's Premier League face-off against Crystal Palace (12pm). In the run-up to the game, he's taken the opportunity to assess some of his promising talents.

The youngsters have been included in first-team training due to the intense schedule for the U21s, which includes behind-closed-doors matches. Gabriel participated in Thursday's training session, with the youngster taking to social media to share snaps of his participation.

Despite his impressive performances for the Under-18s and making the step up in training, Gabriel won't be able to make his first-team debut until January at the earliest.

This is due to Premier League regulations saying that a player must have turned 15 by August 31 to play this season. Gabriel only celebrated his 15th birthday last month,

However, these rules don't apply in the FA Cup . The teenager could therefore potentially make his debut the third round of the competition in early January.

Amorim might still have the opportunity to give another young player their big break - with the other players seen in training old enough to play in the Premier League.

Forward Shea Lacey , 17 year old left winger Noah Ajayi, midfielder Jim Thwaites and centre-back, Godwill Kukonki, have all also been seen in training ahead of the clash against Palace.

Lacey, 18, was included in the squad for Monday night's defeat to Everton . He remained an unused substitute, but earned his place in the matchday squad after Matheus Cunha picked up an injury in the lead-up to the fixture.

View 2 Images

Discussing the teenager ahead of the match, Amorim said: "I'm really happy with him.

"He struggled a little bit with injuries, but they did a very good job balancing his body - and you can sense he can manage more load during training.

"He has a lot of talent, but when they come here they can sense the speed is completely different, so they need to spend more time with us to be prepared because our training is hard. In the Premier League games, that pressure is harder, so they need to be ready.

"When you call a kid up to the first team, they need to behave really well.

"This connection is really important. We are putting everything in place - a nutritionist for the academy starts now - in our club. That is something that should be basic.

"All these things we are doing, so I have more time with them and I'm more confident with them. When we put these kids in to play in the Premier League, they will struggle, but will struggle less I think."

Sky has slashed the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle ahead of the 2025/26 season, saving members £192 and offering more than 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.