Erik ten Hag’s reluctance to trust Alejandro Garnacho at Manchester United this season will have been a deciding factor in the winger’s failure to get into this month’s Argentina squad. Garnacho enjoyed an impressive breakthrough campaign at United last time around but has struggled to earn regular starts at Old Trafford as of late.
The 19-year-old has been in and around the Argentina squad over the last year but was recently denied a call-up to face Uruguay and Brazil in this month’s World Cup qualifiers. Lionel Scaloni later explained that Garnacho was left out due to form but insisted that he remains a key part of Argentina’s plans ahead of next summer’s Copa America.
“Ale’s non-selection is due to a form issue,” admitted Scaloni in a press conference. “We don’t like to bring players in and constantly leave them out or leave them out of the squad. Everyone wants to be there and it’s great, but the human side plays and you have to make decisions.
“It would have been easy to bring him in, but in the last few call-ups he didn’t get minutes and there are times when you have to make decisions. He’s a guy who’s on our radar and he’s going to continue to be there and he has a huge future.”
It seems as though Ten Hag is at least partly to blame for Garnacho’s international snub, with the winger having been denied a proper chance at United so far this season. Marcus Rashford has been preferred on the left flank in spite of his poor recent form, leading to Garnacho making just four Premier League starts over the course of the campaign.
That said, Garnacho has also struggled to make the most of his opportunities to nail down a starting spot for the Red Devils. He has scored just one goal from 16 appearances in all competitions, with that strike coming against Crystal Palace in the Carabao Cup earlier this season.
Ten Hag spoke about Garnacho’s form after the final whistle against the Eagles, with the Dutchman insisting that he needs to improve after a slow start to the campaign. However, it would surely be easier for him to start impressing if he is given more opportunities to do so, especially when Rashford’s sub-par showings are taken into account.
“You have seen at the start of the season we played him and then his contribution was not good enough,” said Ten Hag. “He also had some good actions. You see always he is a threat in the game even when he is not playing that well.
“He has to learn when he does his job in defending he will always have his moment and he will always be decisive because he has great qualities. As well, it’s not only off the ball. I want to see like today, he is entering the box in the right spot to finish, but I think it is quite normal for a player of his age that there is space for a lot of improvement.
“Everyone likes him, the fans like him, the team likes him. I like him but we also have to demand from him and push him because he can act on a very high level, but he has to show it every day.”
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