Alejandro Garnacho has surpassed being Manchester United’s hope for the future. At the moment, he is arguably their best player. He shares the highest productivity in the Premier League with Bruno Fernandes, both of whom have contributed 10 goals each. Over the last four months, Garnacho has scored five goals and provided five assists as a winger.
But his numbers, as impressive as they are, don’t tell the whole story. Amongst supporters, Garnacho has almost achieved messianic status. Every time he gets the ball at Old Trafford, people rise from their seats. And virtually every action he commits on the pitch is met with the familiar cry of “Viva Garnacho, running down the wing, hear United sing”.
There has been a special bond between United fans and Garnacho ever since he led the U18s to victory in the FA Youth Cup in 2022, and that bond has grown stronger as he has played his way into the first team. There were some doubts as to whether he could repeat his feats in youth football at the highest level, but little by little he has put those doubts to rest, proving that he has the mentality and maturity to match his extraordinary talents.
Garnacho has long since settled the question of whether he is good enough for Manchester United. The big question now is whether Manchester United jersey are good enough for him.
Running down the wing
It’s easy to see why United fans love Garnacho. If there’s one position that has defined the club throughout its rich history, it’s the wing. George Best was United’s first global superstar and he played on the left wing. Sir Bobby Charlton may have been the most influential player, but Best was the one who excited the fans and his name is still shouted by the supporters at Old Trafford every week.
Best’s successor was Ryan Giggs, who dazzled opponents on the left for the best part of 24 years and became the club’s player with the most appearances. Giggs overlapped with David Beckham, the finest ball winger in the club’s history, and later with Cristiano Ronaldo, who started as a light-footed winger before becoming a center forward.
Anthony Martial, Ashley Young and Antonio Valencia were somewhat underwhelming successors before Marcus Rashford picked up the baton and developed into an exciting left-forward. Garnacho is the latest exponent of the position and like Best, Giggs and Rashford, he received his footballing upbringing at United’s academy, albeit after joining as a 16-year-old from Atletico Madrid. The fact that he won the Youth Cup like Best, Giggs and Beckham is important. But his style of play, his ability to excite and put on a show, is what makes him a true United player.
Nick Cox, head of Manchester United’s football academy, said last year: “I think it’s in our blood that our style of football is about getting fans on their feet.” “You have to be creative and play with flair. Alejandro has really embraced the fact that our supporters not only love entertaining players, but they really enjoy watching young players who they feel are one of them.”
Taking responsibility
Garnacho is more than just a showman, however, and in the last four months he has added productivity to his already long list of attributes. He’s still only 19 and this is his first full season in the senior team, but he has stepped up and delivered with increasing frequency when his more experienced teammates have struggled.
Take Saturday’s game against Everton. United kept getting opened up by the visitors, who had 23 shots over 90 minutes, just four fewer than Manchester City jersey the week before. With Rasmus Hojlund still missing, United had no center forward and no real focal point in attack.
So Garnacho took responsibility, cutting through the Everton defense and winning two penalties to put United ahead. In the second half, he was the player who looked the most likely to strike again, and he should have done so when he was through on goal, albeit from an acute angle, and shot onto the crossbar.
Erik ten Hag beamed as he spoke highly of him afterwards. “I love him,” said the United manager. “He’s a young player and he needs a challenge, he loves a challenge. He’s very brave, very confident and we need to push him to a high level.”
More focused after missing breakfast
That Garnacho had talent was no secret, but there were concerns about his work rate without the ball, his willingness to defend and his focus. And although he praised the player, Ten Hag felt compelled to mention his focus. “Sometimes it’s difficult for young players because they are inexperienced. But if he keeps this focus and this attitude, he will improve from game to game,” the Dutchman said.
Garnacho was late for breakfast during United’s pre-season tour of Asia in 2022 and Ten Hag, on a mission to raise standards at the club, dropped him for the friendlies against Liverpool, Crystal Palace, Melbourne Victory and Aston Villa. He didn’t let him start in a league game until the trip to Villa in November.
However, Garnacho took his punishment in stride and used it as motivation to pull himself together: He asked the club to create a personalized training plan for him to build muscle mass, and he also hired his own nutritionist.
Fernandes noted his improvement after Garnacho scored his first senior goal against Real Sociedad, stating: “At the beginning of the season he wasn’t at his best. On the trip he didn’t have the best attitude that he should have and that’s why he hasn’t had his chances until now. He’s getting his chances because he’s training better, he has a different attitude and he deserves his chances.”
Rising to the challenge
Garnacho still had a reputation as a super-sub last season and was less effective when starting games. He had similar issues at the start of this season, delivering poor performances against Wolves and Tottenham before returning to his role as a substitute. Again, he worked on his weak points and improved immensely.
A year after highlighting Garnacho’s attitude problems
problems, Fernandes praised him for how he had improved his overall game. It was two days after his monstrous bicycle kick against Everton, but the captain focused on the other aspects of the teenager’s game.
“He has that special talent to be decisive in big moments. But I’m more happy with his work without the ball against Everton – for me it was the best game he’s played so far, it was fantastic,” Fernandes said. “I think when he can put that together with his qualities of scoring goals and helping the team up front, he’s going to be a really good player. He’s already a great player, but I think with his age and talent he can be much better than he already is.”
Garnacho has now started in the last 25 games in all competitions and is the only player to have been selected for every game. Only Andre Onana, Fernandes, Diogo Dalot and Rashford have played more Premier League minutes than him for United this season.
Since his acrobatic goal against Everton, Garnacho has scored six more times and continues to put up a fight. When United were 2-0 down at home to Villa, he led the game and won 3-2 with two goals. He scored twice more in the 3-0 win over West Ham and was United’s best player in the 2-1 win over Chelsea, setting up Scott McTominay’s winning goal.
Kan United matche hans ambitioner?
Academy head Cox described Garnacho as “obsessed with soccer” and could see from the first time he spoke to him on a video call that the winger “knew he wanted to be the best soccer player he could possibly be and would have done anything to do so.”
Given what he has achieved in the last 18 months, there are plenty of reasons to believe that Garnacho could become one of the best players in the world and a Ballon d’Or candidate within three or four years. His ambitions have no ceiling, so can United match them?
A player of his quality and mentality deserves to play in Champions League finals and win league titles, and at the moment United can’t come close to offering him that. Ten Hague’s team finished last in their Champions League group and their chances of qualifying for next year’s expanded tournament are fading fast as they are eight points behind Villa in fourth place.
In the last five years, United have played far more games in the Europa League (33) than in the Champions League (18) and they are heading for more Thursday night football next season. Garnacho deserves not just to play in the Champions League, but to fight to win it.
The appeal of Madrid
United had to fight off other clubs to sign Garnacho, but they had the advantage that he was 16 years old and not very well known. Now his fame is growing and so is the interest in him. So what would the club do if, for example Real Madrid jersey wanted him? Although he plays for Atletico, it’s no secret that Garnacho is a Madrid fan and idolized Ronaldo as a child. In fact, he still does.
There have been no signs of interest from Madrid for the 19-year-old as they have focused on bringing in Jude Bellingham and now Kylian Mbappe. However, if Garnacho continues to perform as he is doing now, Real Madrid will soon begin their regular promotional activities
Paris Saint-Germain cannot be ruled out as a possible destination either, not least because they will soon need a successor to Mbappe, while Bayern Munich will always offer a guarantee of qualifying for the latter stages of the Champions League and domestic silverware (despite the current season).
Will he wait for United’s resurgence?
United are still one of the biggest clubs in the world in terms of size and support, but they no longer compete for trophies and are not in the major international tournaments. Not to forget, they will not be participating in the revamped FIFA Club World Cup in 2025.
The club has been reinvigorated by INEOS after years of stagnation and there is a plan to bring United back to their former position. But new minority shareholder Sir Jim Ratcliffe has admitted it will take time, stressing that the club needs to “go for the right solution, not run to the wrong one”.
Ratcliffe estimates that it could take three years for United to challenge for another league title. But will Garnacho be willing to wait that long, considering how quickly he is developing?
World stars like Bellingham and Erling Haaland turned United down, while the club weren’t even in talks for Mbappe. Garnacho is heading towards that level and United need to make sure they develop in the same way. Otherwise, they could lose him.
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