Erik ten Hag explains Alejandro Garnacho substitution against Bournemouth

Manchester United head coach Erik ten Hag has revealed that Alejandro Garnacho did not have a full week of training ahead of Saturday’s Premier League clash with Bournemouth.

The Argentina international has been one of the club’s standout players during a largely disappointing campaign, contributing nine goals and four assists in 42 appearances in all competitions.

Garnacho was again in the starting XI against Bournemouth on Saturday, but he found it difficult to make his mark and was caught in possession for the home side’s first of the match.

The 19-year-old was withdrawn at the interval, which proved to be the first time that he had been substituted by Ten Hag at half-time during the 2023-24 campaign.

Ten Hag has said that the decision was a tactical one, but the Dutchman revealed that Garnacho had not been training throughout the week in the build-up to the clash at the Vitality Stadium.

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“I think we had to repair over the right side. We didn’t play well, the spaces were there. In possession, we had to bring a sub there,” Ten Hag told reporters after the 2-2 draw.

“Garnacho was during the week not training. Only yesterday. We thought to bring some energy and bring some more quality, quality in the sense of cooperation and togetherness on that right-hand side.”

Bournemouth took the lead in the 16th minute of the contest through Solanke, before Bruno Fernandes levelled the scores with a powerful finish just past the half-hour mark.

The Cherries were back ahead in the 36th minute through Justin Kluivert, but Fernandes netted a 65th-minute penalty for the Red Devils to secure a share of the spoils.

It was ultimately more dropped points for Man United, who have fallen to seventh in the Premier League table, 10 points behind fourth-placed Aston Villa.

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Are Man United’s Champions League hopes over?

Fifth might be enough to secure Champions League football for the 2023-24 campaign, but the Red Devils are 10 points off both fourth-placed Villa and Tottenham Hotspur in fifth.

All three teams are now on 32 matches, so there are a maximum of 18 points to play for in the final exchanges of the campaign, and it is incredibly difficult to imagine Man United moving into contention at this stage.

Ten Hag’s side, who will tackle Coventry City in the FA Cup semi-finals next weekend, actually have a relatively kind fixture list to finish the campaign.

Indeed, the Red Devils will tackle the bottom two Sheffield United and Burnley in their next two league games before opening May away to Crystal Palace ahead of a home fixture with Arsenal.

Newcastle United will then visit Old Trafford, before Man United head to Brighton & Hove Albion on the final matchday; there are a number of winnable games in there, but the team’s lack of consistency this season suggests that a top-four/top-five position is now out of reach.

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