The Argentina youth international winger has turned into a fan favourite, and the time has come for him to prove he is more than just a supersub
The Argentina youth international winger has turned into a fan favourite, and the time has come for him to prove he is more than just a supersub
When a player causes more excitement in the stands while he is on the sidelines than his team-mates do when they are on the pitch,you know you have a star on your hands.When Alejandro Garnacho came out to warm up against Wolves last Saturday, the anticipation among the Manchester United fans at Old Trafford was palpable. Chants of 'Viva Garnacho' rang out across the stadium, lifting supporters who had become a little drowsy watching their team try to see out their 1-0 lead.
The mere sight of the Argentina youth international,
who endeared himself to fans as one of the leaders of last season's FA Youth Cup triumph, was more interesting than what Antony and Jadon Sancho were offering in an unconvincing second-half display.
In a mere nine minutes plus stoppage time on the pitch, Garnacho was able to score to make it 2-0 and clinch all three points. Antony has not managed to score in his last seven appearances, and Sancho has not netted in his last four.
Having returned from two months out with an ankle ligament injury, Garnacho looks ready to round off his breakthrough season with a bigger role in United's final four matches. The fans are desperate to see more of their new hero, but Erik ten Hag must balance their demands with what works best for his team.
GettyThe most impactful of substitutes
Garnacho has scored all three of his Premier League goals after coming off the bench, and all of them came in the 85th minute or later. Only Son Heung-min and Callum Wilson have scored more league goals as a substitute than Garnacho this season.
His debut goal to snatch a 2-1 win at Fulham in November, which was reminiscent of Cristiano Ronaldo's winner at Craven Cottage 14 years previously, came in the 92nd minute, after he had come on in the 72nd. His second league strike, away to Leeds to seal a 2-0 victory, came in the 85th, while his goal against Wolves was in the 94th minute.
Garnacho's other major contribution in the Premier League this season was when he set up Marcus Rashford's winning goal against Manchester City. That was also a game in which he had started on the bench, coming on in the 72nd minute. Ten minutes later, he latched on to a through ball from Bruno Fernandes on the break, smacked a cross against Manuel Akanji's face then span away from Nathan Ake to tee up Rashford to score and seal a 2-1 win.
Another memorable performance came when he was a substitute in the 4-2 win over Aston Villa in the Carabao Cup. When he came on, United were trailing 2-1, but Garnacho provided assists for their last two goals, setting up Rashford and Scott McTominay.
AdvertisementGetty ImagesNot as effective as a starter
Garnacho has started only four Premier League games and he did not perform particularly well in any of them. In those four matches, against Aston Villa, Leeds, Leicester and Wolves, United took seven points from a potential 12.
He made poor decisions against Leeds, and when he was taken off in the 59 minute, the team were trailing 2-0. In his absence, they eventually battled back to draw 2-2. The teenager also struggled to make an impact when starting against Leicester, and was taken off even earlier, at half-time for Sancho. Just as he had done after coming on against Leeds, the England winger went on to score in an eventual 3-0 win.
Garnacho was also taken off at half-time away to Wolves, though he had only been named in the team after Rashford had been dropped for turning up late to a team-meeting. Rashford went on to score in the 1-0 win. The longest Garnacho has lasted in a league game was in the 3-1 defeat at Aston Villa, his first Premier League start, when he was hooked in the 65th minute.
Garnacho has fared better starting matches in the Europa League. In his first competitive start for United against Sheriff Tiraspol, he was voted Man of the Match. That was enough to earn him another starting berth for the trip to face Real Sociedad, where he scored his first goal for the club in a 1-0 win.
He also started the FA Cup fifth-round tie with West Ham, although he did not play well overall, despite grabbing what was effectively the winning goal in the 90th minute.
Getty ImagesNo time for experiments
Given what has happened in previous Premier League games, it is understandable why Ten Hag might be reluctant to start Garnacho away to Bournemouth on Saturday, or in the final two home matches against Chelsea and Fulham. This stage of the season is no time for experiments.
With Liverpool breathing down United's necks and trailing them by only one point in the race for fourth place, United need to win two of their final three games to be assured of qualification for next season's Champions League.
The game at Bournemouth could be particularly dangerous given how bad United have been away from home this season. With the Red Devils likely to be under plenty of pressure in the Cherries' final home match of the season, they could do with a player more likely to work hard off the ball, such as Antony.
Sancho could also be a more preferable player to start at the Vitality Stadium due to his passing ability. Although the England winger has been lacking confidence this season to drive at opponents and try to make things happen – something Garnacho could never be accused of – he rarely gives the ball away. Indeed, Sancho has the best passing accuracy out of United's midfielders and forwards in 2022-23.
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Getty Images'He lacks defensive transition and pressing'
Ten Hag clearly likes Garnacho a lot, given how much he has used the player this season despite him only turning 18 last July. But the manager has been open about some of the reservations he has with him, and has spoken about how he needs to improve his defensive actions if he is to nail down a starting role.
"He is showing some things, but also sometimes he lacks defensive transition and pressing. You have to step up when you go into an action, or keep the ball, so decisions," Ten Hag said after the Wolves game.
"He is a huge talent and he is brave. [He also needs to improve] making decisions and scanning situations, knowing when to go into one-on-ones, or to get behind. When to go for goal, or when to give an extra pass, or get an assist rather than to go for your own success. It’s decisions like that make a good player a top player. That’s the difference."