Manchester United are enjoying a strong start to 2024 with the team’s performances led by a young core of players.
Kobbie Mainoo, Alejandro Garnacho and Rasmus Hojlund are changing the team for the better, and they deserve huge credit.
Mainoo and Garnacho are worthy of particular praise, they have come through the club’s academy, winning the FA Youth Cup in 2022.
What has been so impressive is that they have found their form and turned the team around at a moment where the club’s form was faltering badly and pressure was piling on manager Erik ten Hag.
No excuse for Jadon Sancho
Kobbie Mainoo and Alejandro Garnacho’s performances have been among the highlights of Manchester United’s season.
Speaking to Five, former star Rio Ferdinand talked up both players, and said that the way they have performed has shown up Jadon Sancho.
Sancho signed for United in 2021 and struggled right away. It was a difficult season all round, with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer sacked and replaced with interim manager Ralf Rangnick.
There were only brief moments of promise for Sancho, and his career has stagnated, now back on loan at Dortmund.
A regular excuse trotted out was that he joined a team in a bad moment. Perhaps he did. But Garnacho and Mainoo have cancelled this out.
Ferdinand makes comparison
Rio Ferdinand explained: “This is the argument you have for other players that get signed, my mate made the argument for Jadon Sancho, ‘yeah but he came into a team that was struggling’. But you got to go into any team as a young kid and perform, you have to perform. That’s it.
“Young kids come in, Garnacho, perform. Mainoo, perform. It doesn’t matter if they are winning or not.
“You’d like it to be in a more positive environment like in Man City where its a bit easier, but there’s a different pressure at Man City.”
Sancho has had separate issues this season, forcing his own exit on loan to Dortmund, after refusing to apologise to Erik ten Hag for a social media outburst this week.
Right now there are no Manchester United fans willing to accept any excuses on his behalf.
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