Ruben Amorim concedes Alejandro Garnacho could leave Man United and admits he has yet to work out the youngster’s best position

Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim has admitted that he is struggling to work out how to get the best out of Alejandro Garnacho.

Garnacho has played on both wings and as a No 10 so far this season.

The 20-year-old, who has been linked with a possible move away from Old Trafford during the January transfer window, played 81 minutes on Sunday night as United won 1-0 away at Fulham.

He was subbed off shortly after fellow Argentina international Lisandro Martinez had scored the only goal of the game at Craven Cottage.

Garnacho has been linked with possible moves to Chelsea and Napoli in recent weeks and Amorim was pressed on the subject of the youngster’s future at a post-game press conference.

Amorim conceded that a mid-season exit for Garnacho was at least a possibility as he responded: ‘That, nobody knows. Anything can happen.

When asked about Garnacho’s future, United boss Ruben Amorim said: ‘That, nobody knows’

‘He is improving in every part of the game: the understanding, when to defend. I am trying to find the best position for him. Today he played a bit open, not so inside. We need guys who can play one v one.’

Garnacho has made 120 appearances for United since making his debut as a 17-year-old in 2022, but his future at the club is currently unclear.

Mail Sport reported last Thursday that Chelsea were putting forward a formal offer for Garnacho and that the Stamford Bridge outfit had a clear run at signing him, with Napoli switching their attention to Borussia Dortmund star Karim Adeyemi.

Napoli had earlier failed with multiple offers for Garnacho, despite offering up to £50million. Meanwhile, Chelsea made their opening enquiries last week, to which United responded by slapping a £65m price tag on the former Atletico Madrid starlet.

Garnacho’s agents Carlos Cambeiro and Quique de Lucas were spotted at  Chelsea’s game against Wolves on Monday. They are believed to be open to the idea of their client moving to London.

Amorim also spoke about Garnacho following last week’s 2-1 win over Rangers in the Europa League.

‘I don’t know what will happen,’ said the manager after Garnacho played the full 90 minutes against the Scottish side. ‘Let’s focus on the team and the players that we have here.

‘We don’t know what can happen until the window closes. Anything can happen. I’m focused on the games and he’s here, he’s a player for Manchester United. He was really important for us today and let’s see in the next days.

Garnacho made the 120th appearance of his United career in Sunday’s 1-0 win at Fulham

After the game, Garnacho was seen applauding United’s traveling supporters in west London

‘I think he’s improving in every aspect of the game. He was better today playing inside, also outside, changing positions, he’s improving the recovering position.’

The Portuguese boss continued: ‘You can see it until 90 minutes he’s always there recovering and helping, sometimes showing some frustration and that is good because he wants more.

‘I think he has potential to be so much better in every situation in the game. What I can say is he understood what I was trying to do, was really clear, I just want to help them but in the end it’s them that do the job.’

As a ‘homegrown’ player, Garnacho’s sale would give United a clear profit and greater room for manoeuvre under PSR guidelines.

Meanwhile, despite the Garnacho links, Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca played down the speculation when he spoke ahead of Saturday’s 3-1 defeat by Man City, insisting he was satisfied with his squad.

‘I’m happy with the ones (wingers) we have in this moment,’ Maresca told reporters. ‘I have said many times, on the right side is Pedro (Neto) and Noni (Madueke) and on the left side is Jadon (Sancho). 

‘Misha (Mudryk) was with us but now he is not with us, Tyrique (George) is a young profile that can help us. In this moment, we are okay.’