Alejandro Garnacho receives welcome boost ahead of Man Utd FA Cup final decision

27 May 2023 , 23:45
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Alejandro Garnacho receives welcome boost ahead of Man Utd FA Cup final decision
Alejandro Garnacho receives welcome boost ahead of Man Utd FA Cup final decision

Alejandro Garnacho could finally be in line to make his senior international debut, having earned a third call-up to Lionel Scaloni's side.

The teenager is still yet to make it onto the pitch for the Albiceleste, and wasn't part of the squad which lifted the 2022 World Cup. His most recent call-up came ahead of the March friendlies against Panama and Curacao, but he was forced to withdraw with an ankle injury.

Garnacho has a number of caps for Argentina's under-20s, and was called up by Javier Mascherano for the under-20 World Cup, only for United to block the move. Erik ten Hag has needed to use his full squad in order to make sure of Champions League qualification, with the youngster playing his part with a goal in United's 2-0 victory over Wolves in his comeback appearance.

United star Garnacho is one of several Premier League players in Lionel Scaloni's squad for upcoming games against Australia and Indonesia. The other five - Emi Martinez, Cristian Romero, Enzo Fernandez, Alexis Mac Allister and Julian Alvarez - were all part of the group which won the World Cup in Qatar.

Despite being without the teenager, Mascherano's under-20 side have still made it through to the knockout stages of their age-group World Cup.

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Alejandro Garnacho receives welcome boost ahead of Man Utd FA Cup final decisionManchester United starlet Alejandro Garnacho has recovered from injury in time to put himself in contention for a spot in Erik ten Hag's FA Cup final squad at Wembley (Matthew Peters/Manchester United via Getty Images)

The hosts won all three of their group games, with Manchester City's Maximo Perrone among the goals in a victory over Guatemala, and they will take on one of the third-place teams in the round of 16.

As for Garnacho, he will hope to round off the season with more silverware after being an unused substitute as United won the Carabao Cup final in February.

Ten Hag's team are due to face Manchester City in the FA Cup final on June 3, and the youngster has a goal and an assist in his three games so far in that particular competition.

Should Alejandro Garnacho start in the FA Cup final? Have your say in the comments section

Alejandro Garnacho receives welcome boost ahead of Man Utd FA Cup final decisionErik ten Hag has brought Alejandro Garnacho back into the fold (Getty Images)

Garnacho has played less than an hour of first-team football since returning from injury. After his late goalscoring cameo against Wolves he was handed further runouts against Bournemouth and Chelsea, with United winning all three games to ensure Champions League qualification.

While he is by no means a guarantee to start the final against City, he may be handed an audition against Fulham on Sunday.

Garnacho's first ever Premier League goal came against the Cottagers back in November, and an opportunity may present itself after fellow winger Antony was forced off with an injury against Chelsea on Thursday.

"Everyone has seen him come off, but I don't know how he is," Ten Hag said of Antony after the 4-1 victory.

"I can tell you that it’s serious, but we have to wait a minimum of 24 hours and then we'll know more about the status of his injury."

Tom Victor

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