Kai Rooney and JJ Gabriel send clear message to Man Utd owner Jim Ratcliffe

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Kai Rooney has underlined his potential once again, having guided Manchester United into the Premier League Cup final in front of a watching Jim Ratcliffe . The youngster has been a part of the Red Devils’ youth system since the age of 11 as he attempts to follow in his iconic dad’s footsteps.

And he took a considerable step forwards in doing that this week, coming off the bench for the under-18 side to score in extra-time against West Ham .

Fellow wonderkid JJ Gabriel was also on the scoresheet in extra-time. Co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe was present in Carrington to watch the game, having taken an interest in the academy since his minority takeover.

His private jet was also on the premises, with the first-team due to take on Newcastle away from home on Wednesday evening. Ratcliffe is not the first big name to watch Rooney in action over the past week.

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Dad Wayne was also in attendance last week to take in United’s 6-1 win against Derby County. Having initially been named on the bench, Rooney junior managed to grab himself an assist in the rout.

The fact that Wayne was in attendance was certainly a surprise, having previously been banned. Speaking in 2024, wife Coleen said: "That's the thing with kids I think, it's hard to go on days out. Kai told Wayne to stop coming to football games, when he played grassroots tournaments and stuff because he used to get swarmed and he couldn't even watch the game.

"How do you say to all of these kids, 'Go away, I'm watching my son?' Adults, it's different, you could speak to them. So he (Kai) just said, 'Oh, dad there's no point you coming because you don't even watch me play anyway.'

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“Which is sad, but it can't be helped anyway. At the same time, the fans help you along the way and get you where you are."

Rooney has previously offered his take on the United academy and claimed that the club’s young players had more pressure on their shoulders following Cristiano Ronaldo ’s return.

He said: “There's a bit more pressure on them as well. Kai and [when Cristiano] Ronaldo came back, Ronaldo's lads and Michael Carrick's lad were all on the same team.

"You go and watch and then all of a sudden there's like 10 times the amount of people that's normally there, all around the pitch watching, so there's a lot more pressure because they're coming to watch the three kids to see how they play and stuff. They've got to be ready."

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