Alejandro Garnacho makes Lionel Scaloni’s Argentina squad

Manchester United forward Alejandro Garnacho has been called up to the Argentina National Team for the first time after a string of impressive appearances, mainly as a substitute, for Manchester United. Lionel Scaloni clearly sees something in him, but are the performances from the Madrid-born winger enough to justify his inclusion?

Garnacho joined Manchester United’s youth team from Atlético Madrid in 2020, helping the side to win the FA Youth Cup the following season. He made the leap to the first team under Dutch coach Erik ten Hag, who took a gamble on the winger which immediately paid off.

Garnacho impressed from the off with convincing substitute appearances, terrorising defenders late in games and chipping in with goals, his first coming against Real Sociedad in the Europa League.

Garnacho’s poor attitude is long gone

Despite the positive performances, criticism has been aimed at the player for his poor attitude off the pitch, with Ten Hag admitting that the change in the player’s mentality was something that pleased the coach.

Overall, he has played 27 times for Manchester United this season in all competitions, scoring 4 goals and getting 4 assists. Sofascore have produced a wonderful graphic with Garnacho’s statistics for the 22/23 season so far, and here we can see why Lionel Scaloni has decided to opt for the forward.

Garnacho’s numbers show why Scaloni has chosen him

His statistics, if you look at them and immediately close your eyes and run away, don’t look particularly impressive. Over 2 duels won per 90 for a winger is indeed impressive, showing a high work-rate, but 0.3 key passes and just a single shot per match don’t necessarily add up to being plonked into a World Cup winning squad. However, when we realise that Garnacho’s minutes per game is only 38 on average, the numbers start to shine in a completely different way.

The player’s heat map also concurs with the defensive stats, showing that he is not shy to track back and help his full-back out, using his energy levels to make the most of the little time that is left in games to get both up and down the pitch. At the moment, he is the perfect impact substitute.

Ten Hag has challenged Garnacho to go even further

Speaking of being a substitute, Erik ten Hag spoke both Garnacho’s role but also challenged him directly, saying “I said to him before the game, ‘it’s time. You have an impact when you come on but now you have to have an impact as a starter’. And I think he is capable of it, so that is the next step he has to make.” The player started in the FA Cup against West Ham and scored the winning goal in the last minute.

Message received loud and clear.