Man Utd wonderkid JJ Gabriel training in Barcelona as Deco breaks silence on starlet's transfer demand

The 15-year-old requested a sudden contract termination last month to force a move away from Manchester United. However, the Red Devils swiftly rejected the proposal, desperate to retain one of football's most promising young talents.

With the standoff dragging on, the attacker has temporarily relocated to Spain. According to the Manchester Evening News, Gabriel is maintaining his fitness by working with private coach Jack Hunter at the British School Stadium in Castelldefels, Catalonia.

The youngster and his family frequently visit Barcelona and are eager to engineer a switch to Camp Nou. Meanwhile, fierce rivals Real Madrid are also keeping close tabs on his rapidly developing situation.

Despite the ongoing off-field drama, United boss Michael Carrick recently attempted to play down the situation. The former midfielder stressed the need to protect the academy star from overwhelming public attention.

"I’ll just repeat what I said: he’s a young boy, it’s important we don’t put anything out here, the exposure and scrutiny we have to be careful," Carrick explained. "We have to be sensible and think about him. The situation will work itself out."

While Gabriel’s camp eyes a move to Catalonia, Barcelona sporting director Deco was quick to cool the mounting speculation. Speaking at the Portugal Football Summit, the Camp Nou chief insisted his club is not actively pursuing the Englishman.

"There's nothing to say about this boy," Deco stated. "It's normal that players are linked with us. It always happens. There's a huge market for that with a lot of interests involved, even when [players] are young. But we are not interested in any player in his situation."

Deco further emphasised that Barcelona will not interfere while Gabriel remains tied to Old Trafford. He added: "I'm not sure what's happening, and if he's still a Manchester United player. We are not involved in that. First of all, we need to understand how the situation is before we try to do something. To speak about young, teenage players, it is not our business."

Gabriel will celebrate his 16th birthday next week, though strict regulations prevent him from signing a professional contract with any club until he turns 17. For now, his development remains firmly in limbo following his abrupt exile from the senior squad.

Prior to the transfer request, Carrick was prepared to hand the teenager his first-team debut in a Carabao Cup tie against Brighton. Instead, Gabriel was omitted from that 3-2 defeat, leaving his last competitive outing as a 5-0 victory over Sabah in the UEFA Youth League last month.