Alejandro Garnacho’s recent form has got Manchester United fans and players excited about his career may hold in the future. The attacker recorded two assists in Thursday’s 4-2 League Cup win over Aston Villa after coming on as a second-half substitute, a week after bagging his first senior goal against Real Sociedad.
His last four appearances for the first team have included three starts which saw him make his full senior debut against FC Sheriff in the Europa League last month before making his first Premier League start against Aston Villa on Sunday.
Speaking after the Carabao Cup triumph over the Villans, Marcus Rashford said “more is to come” from the 18-year-old, echoing the shouts of those who have followed the youngster’s progress through the academy.
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Garnacho netted twice in the FA Youth Cup final win over Nottingham Forest at Old Trafford in May before scoring four goals in as many games for Argentina’s Under-20s over the summer.
He has been training with the United first team all season after travelling on the club’s pre-season tour of Thailand and Australia. He failed to get any pitch time due to attitude issues but featured in the final friendly of the summer against Rayo Vallecano, earning praise from Erik ten Hag for his excitable performance.
Ralf Rangnick, who handed Garnahco two substitute appearances earlier this year, had him training with the senior squad in the final few weeks of last season and made a prediction about his first-team career with two caveats about his mindset and efforts.
Speaking in April, he said: “He’s only 17 but a player that hopefully, if he keeps his feet on the ground, if he keeps trying to get better every day, then he will not only be sitting on the bench but there is every chance he will be playing for this club."
Clearly, his attitude during the summer had been a problem but following his goal against Real Sociedad, Bruno Fernandes noted how he bucked up his behaviour. “At the beginning of the season he was not at his best,” he said.
“In the pre-season tour he didn’t have the best attitude that he should have, and that’s why he didn’t get his chances until now. He’s getting his chances because he’s training better, he’s got a different attitude and he’s deserving of his chances.”
Before the opening game of the season with Brighton, Ten Hag sent a message to Garnacho and other young players in the squad about what they must show in order to get a shot in the first team.
Writing in his programme notes, he said: “I have also been getting to know some of our promising young players over the summer, so I will say now, for the record, that if players have the right ability and attitude, they will get their chance, regardless of their age or reputation.”
Ten Hag obviously believes Garnacho has ticked both boxes in this criteria and is now showing the fruits of that labour. His efforts are setting an example for his academy colleagues to follow.
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