Erik ten Hag hailed Alejandro Garnacho after his stoppage time winner for Manchester United at Fulham and claimed he deserves the spotlight.
The teenager came off the bench to net in front of the travelling fans as the Red Devils secured a vital three points before the Premier League breaks for the World Cup. Garnacho, who is just 18, is tipped for big things and continues to be given opportunities under Ten Hag.
The Dutchman went and congratulated his super-sub at full-time after he was introduced with 18 minutes remaining. Garnacho finished off a neat move and Ten Hag commented on the progress made by the academy graduate, who is now adding extra depth to the squad.
Ten Hag replied when quizzed on what he said to the youngster: "'Well done!' It's clear, it's a massive win. Alejandro Garnacho had a big impact in the win, he [finished] also, then the spotlight is on that and that is also justified because it was a great finish, because that is what you expect from subs coming in.
"I am really happy with his progress. We have an extra player in the squad and I'm happy for the academy that we bring out the player, the coaches, really well done, good work, great. But also, I want to emphasise the way we scored that goal all the way from the back to the front, outplayed, composure and I think it was a massive brilliant assist from Christian Eriksen."
Garnacho has only started one league game, but has been given several appearances from the bench as well as minutes in the cup competitions. The Argentine had been pinpointed as a future first-team star after impressing in the youth ranks but Ten Hag didn't know he was a guarantee.
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"It would be weird if I said I knew before now. It's a little bit, let's say, the feeling that you have but also you need an eye for it, yes. But sometimes I'm wrong as well," added the United boss.
"But in this case, we had a discussion with my coaches and I saw his improvement in the last months, you could see his potential and for me, it was the point to bring him in that he had such an impact but you can't think that before.
"But he has and this shows what talents can do, but it is still a long way to go. He has to keep his feet on the ground, it's the whole team now, he has to do much more investment because he will be recognisable for everyone."
