Alejandro Garnacho’s departure from Old Trafford this summer is rapidly growing in importance for Manchester United.
The Red Devils are prioritising reinforcements in Ruben Amorim’s forward line after the club’s worst season in the history of the Premier League.
But attackers are not cheap, particularly ones signed within the country’s top division where English clubs are able to charge a premium for their prized assets.
United have already been stung for 62.5 million to capture Matheus Cunha from Wolverhampton Wanderers. A similarly priced deal is being negotiated with Brentford for Bryan Mbeumo as well.
An upgrade on the number nine position, with Rasmus Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee combining for just seven league goals last season, is also considered an urgent priority. But, again, the potential options are expensive.
United’s financial capabilities are constrained this summer, however. The lack of European football next season is a major loss of income while the club are still paying through the nose for the recruitment mistakes of the past.
The Need for Sales This makes outbound transfers at Old Trafford as much a priority to help buttress the transfer budget as inbound signings.
But the nature of an underperforming team, as United fans have become accustomed to watching over the past two seasons, means other clubs are not queuing up to pay top dollar for the existing players.
United are prioritising the sales of the three forwards who spent last season on loan – Antony, Jadon Sancho, and Marcus Rashford.
But permanent exits are proving difficult to find with the strongest suitor for each player – Real Betis (Antony), Juventus (Sancho), and Barcelona (Rashford) – all exploring loan moves.
United would still benefit from removing their salaries from the wage bill for a season but the expectation heading into the summer is the club would be receiving transfer fees for each player to help supplement the budget to source their replacements.
This has quickly elevated the importance of Garnacho’s exit with United hoping to bank a significant transfer fee for the Argentina international with no shortage of suitors.
‘Praying’ for Garnacho’s Exit Garnacho, 20, is set to depart United despite a series of impressive performances since bursting onto the scene at Old Trafford two years ago. One analysis website believes his talent means he can become a “Ballon d’Or contender” in the future.
The winger’s talent is unquestioned; his attitude and conduct is entirely questionable, however.
There have been a series of minor incidents off the pitch with immature posts by Garnacho on social media. Similarly, he has not always reacted well when challenged by either Erik ten Hag or Amorim, displaying the type of immaturity often associated with a young player.
But Garnacho crossed the line in the wake of the Europa League final loss in May – and it was likely the final nail in the coffin of his at Old Trafford.
Amorim dropped Garnacho for the season-defining clash with Tottenham Hotspur at the San Mames Stadium in favour of Mason Mount, despite the Argentine having started every previous round of the tournament.
United performed poorly in an awful final with Mount utterly anonymous. When Garnacho was finally summoned from the bench with 20 minutes to go, the uplift in United’s attacking threat from the left was noticeable.
But it proved to no avail.
Spurs emerged as 1-0 winners, courtesy of a lucky deflected goal, and secured Champions League qualification next season. United received a runners-up medal and a pat on the back.
In his post-match interview, Amorim was asked about the choice to drop Garnacho in favour of Mount. He delivered a prickly response.
“How many times have we had this conversation and it was the opposite? Some players come in, like Mason Mount, against Bilbao and changed the game. So now it is easy to say. Who missed the big opportunity in the first half against Bilbao? Yeah [Garnacho].
“Of course, now it is easy for us to talk about a lot of views. I just look at the game and try to manage things and improve the team and try to win games. I can see it both ways. I remember everything about the past so it is easy for me to respond to that question.”
Garnacho then poured gasoline on the fire with his own interview in the San Mames after Amorim’s words, describing United’s season as “sh-t” and questioning his future with the club.
“Obviously its hard for everyone. Our season was st. We didnt beat anyone in the league. We lacked a lot of things. When you dont score goals, you always need more. Until we reached the final, I played every round. And I played 20 minutes today I dont know. Im going to try to enjoy the summer and see what happens next.”
A team meeting was held at Old Trafford a few days after the final and Amorim informed Garnacho he was welcome to leave United in front of the entire squad, telling the 20-year-old he better “pray” he can find a new team.
Now, however, it is United who are praying for Garnacho’s sale as he represents one of the only viable options for the club to generate much-needed funds, particularly given his status as an academy graduate means any fee received would constitute ‘pure profit’ from a PSR perspective.
Chelsea Remain in the Hunt Garnacho is believed to want remain in the Premier League should he leave Old Trafford this summer.
There was significant interest in him from Napoli in the January transfer window but the Serie A champions appear to have moved on to other targets.
Similarly, Bayer Leverkusen expressed interest after the appointment of Ten Hag, who remains a huge fan of the player, but this has not been followed up on.
Chelsea also made advances to sign Garnacho in January and, according to The Athletic, he remains a target for the Blues this summer.
Chelsea have already agreed a deal to sign a 20-year-old winger, however – Borussia Dortmund’s Jamie Bynoe-Gittens. This had been thought to have ruled out the pursuit of another, potentially bringing an end to their interest in Garnacho.
But Arsenal have now agreed personal terms with Noni Madueke, Chelsea’s right-winger, and the west London club will “certainly consider” options to replace the former PSV Eindoven star should he leave.
This could reignite a pursuit of Garnacho with Chelsea unafraid to table big offers for players their recruitment department identify. Should this happen, it would present an ideal scenario for both United and their wantaway winger with the Red Devils receiving a boost to their summer budget and Garnacho remaining in England’s top division.
Featured image Clive Brunskill via Getty Images
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Darragh Fox Darragh is a writer for The Peoples Person who spent three years as a history graduate slowly realising football was by far the most interesting thing to write about.
