Manchester United’s current senior attacking options stand at just four.
Anthony Martial has returned from his loan spell at Sevilla fit and firing, finding the net three times in United’s pre-season tour of Thailand and Australia.
The Frenchman is expected to start United’s season opener at home to Brighton next Sunday, with wantaway Cristiano Ronaldo behind the rest of the squad in terms of fitness.
That leaves wide men Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho as Erik ten Hag’s senior options in the forward line.
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The Dutchman knows he needs more. Though he may not get what he wishes for.
But one player who could grab the opportunity with the lack of squad depth is 18-year-old academy starlet Alejandro Garnacho.
A shining light in Erik ten Hag’s first taste of Old Trafford
Garnacho was bright in United’s final pre-season friendly on Sunday at Old Trafford against Spanish opposition Rayo Vallecano.
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The Argentine completed seven out of 11 final third passes, winning possession seven times as well as three tackles, showing how he has fully bought into new manager Ten Hag’s pressing methods. Ten Hag has previously said: “We want to press, we want to press all day and play proactive football.”
Garnacho looks to be fully on board with his new managers demands.
The young winger also created two chances in the 75 minutes he played, displaying his on-the-ball quality, and quality many United fans have already seen much, or know, of.
So far so good for Garnacho
On last season’s route to FA Youth Cup victory, Garnacho scored seven times in six games, including a brace in the final at Old Trafford against Nottingham Forrest in front of a crowd of 67,000. His goal involvements didn’t stop there though, providing three assists in previous Youth Cup matches.
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Last season was a real breakthrough for the Spanish-born winger, as he was called up to the Argentina squad for the first time in March, before making his Manchester United debut at Old Trafford in April in a 1-1 draw against Chelsea.
Garnacho’s involvement with the Argentina and Manchester United senior squad meant the former Atletico Madrid schoolboy trained with both Lionel Messi and Ronaldo in the space of a few months.
Ten Hag’s previous winger works
With United failing to qualify for the Champions League last season after putting up their worst ever points tally in a Premier League season, it’s Europa League football for the Reds again, which could see Garnacho as well as other academy prospects heavily featuring in.
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Over the summer, Garnacho looks to have developed physically, however, there is still a long way to go for the winger in terms of decision making.
Having created shooting opportunities for himself in Sunday’s friendly, Garnacho opted to pass on a number of occasions, notably once in the first half where he chose to find teammate Tahith Chong instead.
This is just an example of Garnacho’s rawness, but will certainly be worked on by Ten Hag.
The former Ajax manager has a track record of improving wingers, not just aesthetically, but also with their numbers in front of goal.
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Current Chelsea winger Hakim Ziyech experienced his best ever goal scoring and assists tally under Ten Hag at the Johan Cruyff Arena, where the Moroccan hit 21 goals and 24 assists in 49 games in the 2018/19 campaign. The following season, Ziyech was bought by the Blues for £35 million, and hasn’t come anywhere close to hitting these numbers since.
Ten Hag’s work on wingers doesn’t just stop there.
Brazilian Antony has been heavily linked with a move to Old Trafford this summer, and he is another product of Ten Hag’s elite level coaching.
The winger managed just four goals and six assists in 29 games for Sao Paulo in 2018/19.
Antony has hit double figures for goals and assists in each of his two seasons since switching to Amsterdam.
Garnacho does have similarities to Antony in his game. The pair enjoy 1v1 scenarios up against their full-back, and often cut inside, though Garnacho showed against Rayo of his ability to also go on the outside.
With the upcoming Premier League season seeing the introduction of five substitutes, Garnacho could well see cameos from the bench.
Fellow young wingers Facundo Pellistri and Amad have also played a part in pre-season however, it has been reported that Pellistri may go out on loan for the third time since joining United in 2020.
As for Amad, his appearances in pre-season have often come as a centre forward/false-nine and maybe this is how Ten Hag sees the Ivorian.
Dutchman Tahith Chong turns 23 later this year and has failed to impress in pre-season and it is very possible for the winger to be sold permanently in the remainder of the transfer window.
Post-match on Sunday, regarding Garnacho, Ten Hag said: “What you want is also a young player who deserves a chance. We want to give them that chance and he shows himself during pre-season [training] and that is why he came on [started]. He played pretty well and that’s hopeful. He is just a teenager but his performance was really good.”
Topics: Manchester United, Erik Ten Hag, Alejandro Garnacho, Cristiano Ronaldo, Football, Premier League
Aadam Haladh