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Former Manchester United star Luis Nani has claimed that Alejandro Garnacho is more like him compared to five-time Ballon d’Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo.
Garnacho has been one of the shining lights for United this term, during a tumultuous period in which the club has endured consistently poor results and performances.
This campaign, Garnacho has really taken on more responsibilities and taken major strides in his United career.
The young Argentine made his 30th consecutive start for the Red Devils during their Thursday night clash against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
As United fell to a late crushing 4-3 loss at the hands of Blues, Garnacho was one of the few players who genuinely left the pitch with any credit.
He registered a sensational brace that gave United an avenue back into the game when they seemed dead and buried and also found the back of the net in the 67th minute to give the 20-time English champions a temporary lead.
The 19-year-old’s ability to breeze past defenders with pace and skill has often drawn comparisons with the legendary Cristiano Ronaldo when he was at United.
Often, fans have been heard chanting “viva Garnacho” – a slight modification of the “viva Ronaldo” song supporters used to serenade the current Portugal captain with.
However, according to Luis Nani who spoke to The Mirror, Garnacho is more similar to him in terms of style of play than he is to Ronaldo.
“When I watch Garnacho, he reminds me of myself. He even has the No.17 shirt – the same number I wore. When he changed to that number this season, he started scoring some goals, so that’s been good for him. He’s not afraid of taking defenders on, making the runs, making assists. He’s a very good player, he has so much time to improve his game and get stronger. He will be fantastic in the future.”
“At United, it’s about going face-to-face with defenders, trying to dribble past opponents and changing the game,” said Nani. “Garnacho is a player who has been showing that in the last few months.”
“His game is more similar to mine when I was at United than Cristiano’s. He’s a very exciting player and I hope in the future he can win titles with the club and help it to be successful again.”
Nani also opened up on United’s decline this season under Erik ten Hag.
The 37-year-old admitted that at times, it has been difficult to watch the team in action as performances have hardly been convincing.
He added, “We’re not used to being in this position in the table. We were always a team used to competing for first position. The last few years the team hasn’t been able to do that, but we know it’s a process and you have to readjust the team, the club.”
“We had so many good years in the past. When you have that, you have to accept some moments like this will come. There’s pressure, because there are big names in the past who did well for the club, so there will be comparisons. Those playing today need to show up.”
Nani explained that the current period at United is different and there are different players with different characters and personalities to the ones that made the 20-time English champions extremely successful under Sir Alex Ferguson.
According to the Adana Demirspor star, the pressure to succeed at Old Trafford is completely different compared to anywhere else.
Nani emphasised that at the moment, the pressure is even more intense because the club is battling to return to glory and fight for top honours once more.
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