Two favourites for Man United wonderkid JJ Gabriel 'revealed' as star celebrates 16th birthday

Real Madrid and Barcelona are reportedly the favourites to sign JJ Gabriel, with the Manchester United wonderkid celebrating his 16th birthday on Tuesday.

Widely regarded as one of the best teenagers in world football, JJ Gabriel stunned Man United last month when he told the club that he wanted to leave.

JJ Gabriel made his senior debut for Man United in their pre-season game against Atletico Madrid over the summer, but he is yet to feature for the first team in a competitive match.

The forward made his debut for Man United Under-18s at the age of 14, and he had been due to sign scholarship terms with the Red Devils on his 16th birthday.

A professional contract was then expected to follow a year later, but his time with the 20-time English champions is seemingly coming to an end.

Real Madrid, Barcelona 'the favourites' for JJ Gabriel

JJ Gabriel boasts an incredible record of 29 goals and four assists in 32 appearances for Man United Under-18s. Meanwhile, he has scored twice and registered two assists in two appearances for Man United Under-21s in the Premier League 2.

The forward also scored a hat-trick against Sabah Under-19s in the UEFA Youth League earlier this season, but it is understood that his absence from the senior squad against Sabah in the Champions League angered his representatives.

JJ Gabriel's camp are believed to have wanted the player to feature for at least 20 minutes against Sabah in the Champions League, Brighton & Hove Albion in the EFL Cup and also the upcoming Premier League clash against Bournemouth.

JJ Gabriel is set to leave Man United in the near future

According to German journalist Florian Plettenberg, JJ Gabriel is expected to receive a Cypriot passport in the near future; he qualifies through his mother.

A free transfer in January is therefore seen as possible, and Plettenberg claims that Real Madrid and Barcelona are prepared to offer a huge salary, in addition to bonuses and a substantial signing-on fee for the wonderkid.

Bayern Munich have allegedly not given up hope of signing JJ Gabriel but are currently behind the La Liga duo in the race for his signature.

Since the bombshell news, JJ Gabriel has allegedly spent time in Barcelona training; it is understood that JJ Gabriel and his family are regular visitors to Barcelona and would ideally like to secure a move to Camp Nou over any other club.

Man United had allegedly initially still been hopeful of keeping JJ Gabriel, but the teenager is now set to leave the 20-time English champions in the near future.