Gabriel's stunning strike in front of Carrick as Man Utd U18s cruise to victory

JJ Gabriel had a delightful run and shot as he grabbed a double in a thumping 6-1 victory by Manchester United's U18s against Derby County.

Louie Bradbury and Noah Ajayi also both got a brace in the Under-18 Premier League clash which was again watched on by Michael Carrick and his coaching staff.

Wayne Rooney and John O'Shea were also in the crowd as Darren Fletcher's side cruised to victory.

Cameron Byrne-Hughes also saved a penalty from Rams striker Israel Green in the second half, as United closed the gap on leaders Manchester City to a point, even if the Blues have games in hand.

And United have an U18 Premier League Cup semi-final to look forward to.

They have been rewarded for their progress in the competition with a home game against West Ham United at the last-four stage.

The tie will be played at Carrington on Wednesday 4 March, kicking off at 12:00 GMT.

While the Reds are safely through to the quarter-finals of the FA Youth Cup as well, after the 4-1 win at Oxford United last week.

Meanwhile, Fletcher has reinforced that the youth teams go "game by game" with their development the priority.

He stated of the U18s winning start to the year: "It is important that we challenge the players to play properly, we go and try and win every game, I don't think we were fully aware of that stat until recently but it is not something we focus on, it is primarily about development."

Fletcher has also spoken before of what it means to the club to have Carrick watching on.

“I think, ultimately, the biggest thing is that they are there to support, they are there to get their eyes on the players and it's amazing. It shows how connected we are, it shows how the club is and those guys get it," he said.