JJ Gabriel wins late penalty as Man United U18s beat Burnley to stay perfect

Manchester United U18s continued their impeccable start to the season, beating Burnley 1-0 at Carrington on Saturday morning.

Both teams had chances to score in the early stages, with Burnley’s Fabio So firing his shot wide before Douka Abdoulaye’s volley from Jim Thwaites’ free-kick struck the crossbar.

Burnley got another chance to grab the lead before halftime. Former Man United youth player Luca Scanlon pounced on a loose pass, only for Albert Mills to make a timely turn to prevent him from scoring.

The fixture became more eventful after the break as United enjoyed more possession.

Just before the hour mark, Abdoulaye ran behind Burnley’s defensive line, received a through ball from Thwaites, but could not get past goalkeeper Callum Feeney.

Feeney was superb again, denying substitute Eddie Ibrovic-Fletcher, who replaced Jariyah Shah in the 61st minute.

JJ Gabriel then got his first goal-scoring opportunity in the game when Thwaites’ delivery was headed across goal, but he was denied the opportunity to shoot by a timely block.

Burnley’s first chance after the break fell to Warren Taylor, who headed onto the roof of the net after being picked out by a pass at the back post.

Gabriel came close to finding the breakthrough, controlling a cross perfectly only to be dispossessed and denied the chance to get a shot away.

Two minutes before the end of normal time, the 14-year-old won a penalty and Thwaites stepped up to convert, placing his spot-kick beyond the reach of the outstretched Feeney.

Burnley got a chance to restore parity in stoppage time, but goalkeeper Fred Heath made a fantastic save to preserve United’s slim lead.

Just before the final whistle, the away side thought they had earned a draw from a corner, but the goal was ruled out for a foul on Heath.

United will return to action next Saturday at Wolverhampton Wanderers, aiming to continue their impeccable start to the season.

Article written by Henry Thornton .