JJ Gabriel denied Man Utd reward given to Kobbie Mainoo as announcement made

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JJ Gabriel may have additional incentive to inflict damage on Manchester City in the forthcoming FA Youth Cup final. That's after Manchester United 's fiercest rivals intervened to stop him emulating Kobbie Mainoo's remarkable achievement of four years ago.

Mainoo, 21, was a key figure in the United side that defeated Nottingham Forest to claim the FA Youth Cup in 2022 . However, that occasion proved all the more memorable due to the final being staged on home turf at Old Trafford.

A substantial crowd exceeding 67,000 attended to witness United's future stars triumph 3-1 that day. And Mainoo featured prominently in the last United squad to reach the FA Youth Cup final - before Gabriel and his teammates progressed to this year's showpiece.

Playing in front of a crowd of that magnitude would be just reward for Gabriel and his team-mates at the end of a terrific campaign. As well as making it to the FA Youth Cup final, United's under-18s were also the team to give league champions City the stiffest run for their money en route to clinching second place.

A controversy has erupted surrounding the staging of the 2026 final and its chosen venue. This follows City ruling out the Etihad Stadium in favour of pressing ahead with work on the North Stand in the hope of having 7,000 additional seats ready for the final fixture of the Premier League season.

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The prospect of relocating the final to Old Trafford was suggested. However, City dismissed that proposal for fear of sacrificing home advantage for a showdown between two local adversaries.

Instead, the final on May 14 will be staged at the Joie Stadium, home to Manchester City women. Consequently, what might have been a final witnessed by tens of thousands will be restricted to around 7,000 spectators.

It means 15-year-old Gabriel will miss out on the same youth finale that Mainoo experienced back in 2022. That was the same year he was initially promoted into United's senior squad and began his journey towards becoming a household name at Old Trafford.

Mainoo was part of the same FA Youth Cup-winning team as the likes of Alejandro Garnacho, Dan Gore and Omari Forson. Each of those players went on to secure first-team opportunities for United, though only Mainoo remains at the club right now.

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Just like that group, Gabriel and others have been instrumental in United reaching this stage of the competition. It was Gabriel who broke the deadlock in their semi-final victory over Crystal Palace , where Chido Obi sealed the result in extra time.

Wayne Rooney's son, Kai, has also contributed to the club's journey to the Joie Stadium. United legend Darren Fletcher has assembled a squad of prospects with a genuine opportunity to join some fellow greats in the history books.

Sky has upgraded its Ultimate TV and Sky Sports bundle to now include HBO Max, Netflix, Disney+, discovery+ and Hayu, as well as 135 channels and full Sky coverage of the Premier League and EFL.

This also means Gabriel's next outing at Old Trafford could well be his first-team debut. The teenager might have already made his senior bow were it not for strict regulations surrounding minimum age limits.

However, the club do intend to take him on their upcoming pre-season tour. This suggests his breakthrough into the first team could also be just around the corner.

Much like Mainoo, he'll be hoping to step into the senior setup with the Youth Cup in hand. However, he'll need to claim victory on City's patch, away from the familiar surroundings of Old Trafford, if he is to achieve that same feat.