Former Manchester United favourite Nani has identified the one player in the current squad that most closely resembles his game, who can also do minority shareholder Sir Jim Ratcliffe a big favour this summer. The British chief is set to further overhaul Erik ten Hag’s team in the upcoming transfer window, but could be saved some money by the same player hailed by Nani.
He singled out Alejandro Garnacho as the player who “reminds me of myself” after enjoying a breakthrough campaign, cementing himself as one of the first names on the teamsheet. His displays, predominantly on the right, may even convince Ratcliffe that he no longer needs to make a big investment in that role.
United were linked with a £60million move for Michael Olise and their chiefs were even reportedly convinced of triggering the Crystal Palace star’s release clause. However, that money could be better served elsewhere if Garnacho and Marcus Rashford can take a spot on each flank for the foreseeable future, with the Argentine already in possession of Nani’s blessing.
“When I watch Garnacho, he reminds me of myself,” Nani told the Mirror. “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. 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 (Ronaldo). 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.”
Ratcliffe is said to be a big admirer of Olise and his performances since stepping up to the Premier League have attracted interest from Champions League-level clubs, but £60m would represent a huge outlay and that money could instead be spent elsewhere thanks to Garnacho’s development.
A striker and defender are viewed as top targets when Ratcliffe oversees his first summer transfer window in charge at Old Trafford and the budget for those positions may have increased, with less of a pressing need for Olise at United
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