Manchester United hero Paul Scholes has suggested that Alejandro Garnacho’s opportunity to play alongside Lionel Messi could be the root of his apparent ‘attitude’ problems.
The young Argentine is currently in the midst of a breakthrough season at Old Trafford having helped his teammates to the FA Youth Cup last term. He has made five appearances for the Red Devils so far this season under Erik ten Hag and scored his first senior goal in Thursday evening’s Europa League victory over Spanish side Real Sociedad.
He earned plenty of praise for his showing, none least from teammate Bruno Fernandes who hailed the young Argentine’s personal development over the past few months.
Speaking with BT Sport, he said: "He did well tonight, but he knows we still expect a lot from him. He did not start the best during pre-season and maybe did not have the attitude that he should have had. But he has changed that now and you can see that with his performances on the pitch."
Those comments were somewhat of a surprise after the game with Chris Sutton in particular condemning the former Sporting playmaker.
“Totally unnecessary. The message which I think Erik ten Hag wants coming out of Manchester United is that it’s harmonious,” Sutton said. “I was really surprised at that. He could’ve used different language.
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“Garnacho had a brilliant game tonight, he was the one real threat Manchester United had. I don’t get that from Bruno. He’s better than that.”
Scholes has a theory behind the 18-year-old’s attitude, though, and claimed that his chance to train with Argentine icon Messi on international duty might have seen the youngster get a bit too confident.
"He said that was in pre-season, so maybe he was too big for his boots in the summer," Scholes said. "He did go with Argentina and play with Messi, and maybe he has come back and thought 'this is me and I am part of this team'.
"He's a young lad, he is going to learn and we are going to see the benefits of that."
Garnacho will certainly be aiming to have more of an impact for the Red Devils before the Premier League takes a break for the World Cup. Ten Hag’s men take on Aston Villa and Fulham in their final two league matches before the tournament.
They also clash with Villa again in the third round of the Carabao Cup - a game that Garnacho will no doubt be hoping to get another opportunity to add to his recent goal.
