Inside Ruben Amorim’s emergency meeting with JJ Gabriel as Man Utd wonderkid, 15, is told to follow Cristiano Ronaldo

MANCHESTER UNITED are pulling out all the stops to persuade highly-rated youngster JJ Gabriel to stay, including a Ruben Amorim pep talk featuring football icon Cristiano Ronaldo.

The teen is one of the highest rated stars in the club’s academy and has only bolstered the hype around him after some incredible displays in the youth ranks.

SunSport exclusively revealed earlier this month how Barcelona were targeting the 15-year-old.

He hit a hat-trick in a 7-0 win over Liverpool for the Under-18s at the end of November.

Sources say the involvement of director of football Jason Wilcox was crucial for keeping him at the club this season and next term.

United insiders believe the involvement of Wilcox demonstrated to Gabriel’s family how much they value the forward and there is confidence they will keep him.

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Numerous measures have been made to try and convince Gabriel to see remain in Manchester long-term, including an 11th-hour intervention with Wilcox and CEO Omar Berrada at Carrington and a meeting with Sir Alex Ferguson.

And the Manchester Evening News now report Gabriel has also been introduced to current first-team boss Amorim.

The report says Amorim spoke about his philosophy and stressed the importance of working hard, citing stories of former Portugal international team-mate Ronaldo as an example with the Red Devils icon being the first in and last out of training.

Gabriel and his family were also invited to the directors’ box at Old Trafford to watch this season’s Premier League opener against Arsenal, which ended in a narrow 1-0 defeat.

There is said to be a real “buzz” in football circles about what Gabriel could achieve, with some suggesting he could be the best talent United’s academy has ever seen.

However, club chiefs want to temper expectations to allow Gabriel to focus on his development, though the report adds that sources close to the attacker – simply known as just “JJ” to close friends and family – aren’t worried about keeping him grounded.

Gabriel, who turned 15 in October, trained with the first-team squad for the first time in November as Amorim called up five youngsters ahead of the trip to Crystal Palace.

The attacker is too young to make his Red Devils debut in the Premier League this season, but could appear in the FA Cup when United take on Brighton in the third round at the start of January.

He was seen in the group alongside Under-21s star Shea Lacey, who has been named on the bench of the first-team in each of the last four Premier League games.

Lacey, 18, could make his debut over the festive period when the first team squad suffers from the absence of Bryan Mbeumo, Amad Diallo and Noussair Mazraoui as the trio head off for international duty for the African Cup of Nations.

United boss Amorim has been left “frustrated” over the lack of clarity over whether the trio will be able to play in Monday’s clash at Bournemouth.

Amorim said: “We are still in conversation with national teams. The game is Monday, they are here, they are training and we are trying to prepare for all the scenarios for the game.

“It’s frustrating but at the same time nobody knows who is going to play. We have players to cope with everything and in a long week you can work to prepare for a situation.

“I don’t know if it’s going to be the same situation, it depends on the games. Every national team has their ideas about when they want the players.

“I expect (a decision) today or maybe tomorrow. But we are waiting until the last moment to choose the best team to start the game.”

The Afcon final is on January 18, so the three United players could miss up to seven fixtures.