'Like a young Cristiano' - Paul Scholes makes Ronaldo comparison for Man Utd teenager Alejandro Garnacho
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Updated 27/10/2022 at 22:37 GMT
Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag gave starts to both veteran Cristiano Ronaldo and teenager Alejandro Garnacho on Thursday night. The 18-year-old impressed the watching Paul Scholes, a former team-mate of Ronaldo, and he drew comparisons between the two players after seeing United beat FC Sheriff in the Europa League at Old Trafford.
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Paul Scholes and Owen Hargreaves praised Alejandro Garnacho for his performance against FC Sheriff for Manchester United on Thursday.
A 3-0 win for United means that they can top the group in the Europa League next week if they beat Real Sociedad away by any result that is not 1-0.
While Garnacho was not on the scoresheet, nor did he provide an assist, he was one of United’s brightest performers. The two former United players thought that he could be in line for another start soon.
Scholes even compared him to Cristiano Ronaldo, who started and scored against the Moldovan opposition to mark his return to first-team action after a short spell on the sidelines due to a disciplinary matter.
“He was exceptional, he had real quality,” Scholes told BT Sport.
“The thing I liked about him: he was direct, he ran at defenders all the time. Tricks that had a bit of function, he had everything, it was just missing a goal or an assist.
“This club loves entertainers. He was like a young Cristiano, taking the ball down. I was impressed: Sometimes, wingers, sometimes they can’t go down that left hand side, but he could do both, and it makes you so unpredictable.
“I think his performance was exciting for an 18 year old kid but he was one to look for the future.”
Asked if he would get another start soon, Scholes did not think it was out of the question.
He said: “Difficult to say, he’s still very young, he played against opposition that isn’t the strongest.
“He’s definitely an option for the manager, he’s one to think about. He could come on for the last 20-30 minutes and he could be more dangerous because he can go past people, either side. There are not many wingers who can do that these days, but when you come into the team you have to take your chances as a young player and I don’t think he did his case any harm.”
Former United and Manchester City midfielder Hargreaves was also impressed.
“He didn’t disappoint, the fans would have loved him,” he added. “We all enjoyed watching him play. What a beautiful feeling. He knows he played well by the way, the fans appreciated it. His family will be having a proud moment.”
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