The noise around Marcus Rashford since the Manchester derby has been so deafening that the player who was dropped with him has flown under the radar somewhat.
Alejandro Garnacho joined Rashford on the list of players who didn’t make the squad for that game and in many ways, that’s an even bigger story because he had become the first name on the teamsheet, which Rashford can’t say for himself.
There was no easy fit visible for Alejandro Garnacho in Ruben Amorim’s 3-4-3 much like Rashford so it can be said that this was coming to an extent.
Now the focus is on how the Argentine reacts to the first setback of his career which is not even a proper setback, just a challenge to overcome.
So far, his idol Cristiano Ronaldo is being proven right and that’s an ominous sign for the player and the club.
Alejandro Garnacho proving Cristiano Ronaldo right
Garnacho’s reverence for Ronaldo is no secret and he recently walked the path of his idol in the most positive way possible.
Garnacho winning the Puskas Award made him only the second player, after Ronaldo, to win the Puskas Award in a Man Utd jersey since 2009.
His wondergoal against Everton last season was the perfect storm of what encapsulated Garnacho as a player under Ten Hag- the exciting saviour of a dysfunctional squad.
Now that Amorim is trying to make the squad functional, it’s not a positive sign that Garnacho suddenly finds himself on the fringes.
He has come under criticism recently for his selfish play on the field and for not showing enough improvement from the version that broke through under Ten Hag.
Coincidentally, Ronaldo, in his infamous interview with Piers Morgan, predicted that would happen with young players at United back in 2022.
He said: “They live in a different era… their mentality, they are not the same. They have not suffered. Their hunger. I think they have things more easily.
“I’m not the kind of guy who likes to give advice, as I prefer to be an example. I’m there every morning and do the same stuff. I’m probably the first one to arrive and the last one to go out. I think the details speak for themselves.
“But this generation, it’s like they listen to one thing and in two minutes they have already forgotten it, and they do whatever they think it’s better.
“I think this generation, you’re going to count by your hands how many will reach that level, because these years of preparation, it helps a lot.”
Ronaldo gave Garnacho an ‘example’ teammate to learn from
While dropping these brutally honest quotes about young players at large which, with time, have aged to the detriment of the club with respect to Garnacho, he also predicted something else.
Ronaldo said Diogo Dalot was among the most professional players at the club who will have that longevity and two years from the statement, it couldn’t have aged better.
Granted, Dalot is not in his best form at the moment but since that statement, he has become one of the most reliable players for United, winning the Player of the Year award last season.
Ronaldo had said: “If you ask me what I see in Manchester United, I can mention probably Dalot. Diogo Dalot is an example. He is young, but he is very, very professional.
“And I’m not doubting that he’s going to have longevity in football because he’s young, he’s smart, intelligent, and is very professional.”
Garnacho has a teammate he can learn from in the dressing room itself and at just 20, he has plenty of time to do it too.
Rashford is past the age where he can lean on the potential tree as a mitigating factor for bad performances but for Garnacho, how he faces this first major setback of his career could define him as a player.
He either proves Ronaldo right, which helps nobody or does the opposite. His idol would never be happier at being proven wrong if the latter happened.
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