Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag faces a challenge to manage prospering starlet Alejandro Garnacho’s meteoric trajectory. However, the Dutchman has taken impressive steps to ensure his feet remain firmly on the ground while he continues making an impact in the first team.
Garnacho has enjoyed quite the year. After Ralf Rangnick handed him his senior debut against Chelsea at Old Trafford in April, he joined a prestigious list of names by being named the Jimmy Murphy U18 Player of the Year a month later. He turned 18 in July but has accelerated his first-team breakthrough under Ten Hag with a series of eye-catching displays.
But he had to wait for his chance after a sticky start to his relationship with United’s new boss. Both Ten Hag and Bruno Fernandes have touched on Garnacho’s poor attitude during pre-season in recent weeks, referencing his lateness for two team meetings. It led to him not playing a single minute of United’s four-game tour of Thailand and Australia.
And Ten Hag’s tough love has continued into the 2022/23 campaign as he attempts to keep Garnacho humble and on the right path to meeting his sky-high potential. According to the Mail, the No 49 still isn’t allowed to move into the first-team dressing room at Carrington, despite training with Ten Hag’s squad permanently.
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Garnacho’s attitude qualms were never major, and he turned down extra holiday in the summer to return to United early to make a solid impression on Ten Hag. And since his pre-season issues, there has been a ‘notable’ shift in his attitude, and he’s regularly among the first to arrive at Carrington to get to work.
The report adds that coaches are thrilled with his commitment to the gym, which is reaping the rewards alongside close work with a nutritionist outside the club as he builds muscle mass to meet the demands of senior football at such a young age. He can now also speak fluent English after making the brave decision to move from Atletico Madrid during lockdown in 2020.
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It’s been a whirlwind few weeks for Garnacho, during which he’s made his first start against Sheriff Tiraspol, scored his first goal away at Real Sociedad and produced his best performance yet on Thursday. The Argentine winger came off the bench with 30 minutes left and helped United come from behind to defeat Aston Villa 4-2 in the Carabao Cup, providing two assists as he ran riot down the left.
After his expected exclusion from Argentina’s World Cup squad, he will be itching to spend another month on the training ground with Ten Hag and is bound to feature in United’s two winter friendlies at Cadiz and Real Betis.
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