After what was a rather dismal performance for Manchester United against West Ham United, one Red Devils player, in particular, had a point to prove.
Alejandro Garnacho started from the left for Manchester United during that defeat in London with Marcus Rashford remaining on the bench for Erik ten Hag’s men.
The Argentine had a golden chance to open the scoring for the Red Devils in the capital but he fluffed his lines after being played in brilliantly and that chance seemed to haunt him and he struggled at the London Stadium.
However, the 3-2 victory over Unai Emery’s Aston Villa, which came after the Red Devils were 2-0 down in the first half was the moment that Ten Hag may have stumbled upon something great.

Garnacho’s new position
After the Argentine saw his first goal disallowed for the Red Devils when he ran too late after Rashford’s great pass, there was palpable relief when, just a few minutes later, the winger found the back of the net.
The issues on the right of the front three have been well documented for United this season and after some briefly unsuccessful spells in that position, Garnacho was given the chance to impress again and boy did he.
His first goal seemed to kick United into life and he found the back of the net barely 10 minutes later to really kickstart a magical comeback from the Red Devils.
The constant harassing and pressing from the winger off the ball really gave something to the United attack and his willingness to attack Alex Moreno, Villa’s left-back, was also something that, with Antony, has not been a staple of the Red Devils’ attack consistently enough.
And unlike Antony, Garnacho has a direct goal threat, willing to shoot on his right foot whenever he gets a chance.
Garnacho brought the best out of Rashford
Ironically, not only was Garnacho performing well from the right but the Argentine brought the best out of Rashford, who came back in on the left, and it was the Englishman who assisted United’s first goal in over seven hours.
The wing pairing were dangerous for the Red Devils and caused Villa problems, particularly in the second half, as the Midlands side struggled to get out of their own box at times.
A win for Ten Hag is vital in terms of the context of the season, and you could see the relief on Rasmus Hojlund’s face as he finally netted his first Premier League goal. The Dutchman has to stick with the front three for the Nottingham Forest fixture.
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