Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes has echoed Erik ten Hag’s thoughts on Alejandro Garnacho, following the teenager’s wondergoal against Everton on Sunday.
Garnacho scored United’s opener in their 3-0 win at Goodison Park with a stunning bicycle kick, which immediately earned comparisons to similar goals scored by Red Devils legends Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney.
He also mimicked Ronaldo’s ‘Siu’ and ‘I am here’ celebrations after scoring and is a huge fan of his former teammate and Al-Nassr star. Speaking after the game, Fernandes said that while the winger still has a long way to go before he can emulate his hero, he has the credentials to reach the very top.
Fernandes said: “It’s amazing – something out of this world, I think. Probably he’s watching too much Cristiano clips! We all know that he’s a big fan.
“Still a long way for him to be like Cristiano but he’s getting his steps. He wants to be something special in the world of football and I think he has the capability to do that, but he has to do more than that goal!”
And United boss Ten Hag made a similar claim about Garnacho’s future, insisting he has the potential to become one of the best in the world but needs to “work very hard” to realise it. “Don’t compare, I don’t think it is right,” Ten Hag said in his post-match press conference.
“They all have their own identity, but for Garnacho to go that way he has a lot to come, he has to work very hard. You have to do it on a consistent basis and so far he has not. But he definitely has high potential to do some amazing things, it’s not the first time we saw this.
“We have already often seen glimpses, but if you want to be a player like Rooney or Ronaldo you have to score 20, 25 goals in the Premier League each season. That’s not easy to get, you have to work hard, you have to go in areas where it hurts.
“So a lot to come. But potential, he has it. It was a fantastic goal. In the season, there are still many games to play, but maybe already it is the goal of the season. Not only the finish, it was the back to the end but the finish was incredible.”