Garnacho is key to Ten Hag’s future at Man United،
MANCHESTER, England – As Manchester United players walked away at halftime, trailing Everton 2-0, they disappeared into the Old Trafford tunnel to the sound of a chorus of “Viva Garnacho” from the fans of Stretford End. Manager Erik ten Hag followed with his usually impassive expression, but it wouldn't have been a surprise if he was singing in his head.
After a week in which pressure mounted on the Dutchman, Alejandro Garnacho won two first-half penalties – converted by Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford – after drawing James Tarkowski and then Ben Godfrey into clumsy challenges to help United win. achieve a well-deserved goal. win in the race to qualify for the Champions League next season.
“I think the guys conveyed their game plan very well,” Ten Hag said afterward. “By letting go [deeper] Bruno and Scott [McTominay] then enter the races behind Garnacho and Rashford. We expect a high press from Everton, with their double six going to our double six and then we created the spaces in behind. I was happy with it and from there we scored goals, penalties.”
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Ten Hag is still walking a tightrope as United manager, having notched his first Premier League win in three games, but if he survives the summer it will be partly thanks to Garnacho. Not only is the 19-year-old their most productive striker, but he can also cite the Argentine winger's emergence as one of the major successes of his time at Old Trafford.
After a largely disappointing campaign which sees United sit sixth in the table, Ten Hag must finish the season strongly while convincing new minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe that he is the right man for the job in the long term. Garnacho is key to both of those things and his contribution against Everton saved United from another difficult afternoon and – perhaps – saved Ten Hag from having another awkward conversation with Ratcliffe.
“He is progressing very well and we are very happy with him,” Ten Hag said. “His contribution today was huge, his runs, his dribbling. It's also attractive for the crowd, obviously we want to show something. I think the penalties are well deserved. If he can stay focused and he makes the right effort. Sometimes for young players it's difficult. We have their job to do. If he stays focused, he will improve from game to game. In the week you win your game, you must be perfect.”
Garnacho, however, cannot paper over all the cracks in this United side and despite Everton coming in after a 10-game winless run in the Premier League, they have still managed to expose some familiar weaknesses.
One of the criticisms leveled at United this season is that they are conceding too many shots and after the first 45 minutes Everton had managed 11. Dwight McNeil twice fired efforts past the post and the score was at half time. -time would have been 2-1 instead of 2-0. if Raphaël Varane had not blocked his third shot of the half just before the break.
United's poor start – which saw them gift Amadou Onana a chance just two minutes after kick-off – was characterized by midfielder Casemiro, who ceded possession eight times in the First 25 minutes. You might get away with it against an Everton team who are among the lowest scorers in the league, but probably not against Liverpool, who travel to Old Trafford next weekend. By the end, Everton had recorded 23 shots on goal, taking the number to 134 that United have faced in their last six league matches.
“If you see their xG [Expected Goals] is not that high (1.51) and ours is much higher (3.12),” said Ten Hag, when asked if it was sustainable to face more than 20 shots at every match. [though two penalties helped United’s figure somewhat]. “We have players who feel comfortable defending low. But you have to be disciplined and you have to integrate it very well.
“They were poor quality chances. You see the chances, they had them, and I also think the way we defended in stoppage time was very good. We were really organized and focused, everyone did There were one or two second phases where they had a few opportunities, but overall we did pretty well.
Despite Ten Hag's insistence that the number of opposition shots doesn't matter, Liverpool will be delighted to see how many chances Everton created ahead of their FA Cup quarter-final.
United will be hoping to have striker Rasmus Højlund available to take on Jurgen Klopp's side, but his potential return will not come at the expense of Garnacho. The Argentine has not missed a game since the derby defeat to Manchester City in October and, with the game against Everton ultimately won, he was substituted with seven minutes remaining. Any rest is precious for one of Ten Hag's most important players ahead of a run of matches between now and the end of the season that will play an important role in deciding Ten Hag's future.
Named Man of the Match, Garnacho had to remain on the pitch after the final whistle to fulfill his media duties and when he finally left, he departed to a standing ovation from the remaining supporters and further chants of “Viva Garnacho.
The teenager is keeping United's Champions League hopes alive as well as Ten Hag's hopes of being allowed to remain as coach.
