Alejandro Garnacho may not be able to secure his desired transfer from Manchester United this summer, but he could still hand Rúben Amorim a “perfect” parting gift.
Alejandro Garnacho is one of four Manchester United players expected to depart the club this summer, following Marcus Rashford’s confirmed loan move to Barcelona.
Rúben Amorim and his squad flew to the United States for pre-season earlier this week, with new signings Matheus Cunha, Diego Leon, and Bryan Mbeumo included in the travelling party.
Garnacho, along with Tyrell Malacia, Antony, and Jadon Sancho, has been excluded from Amorim’s plans and instructed to stay away from first-team training. While the club’s facilities remain accessible for their personal use, they are training separately from the main group.
The Argentine winger featured 40 times under Amorim last season, but their relationship deteriorated after he publicly criticised the manager’s decisions following the Europa League final loss to Tottenham Hotspur.
Chelsea remain interested in Garnacho
It has been well established that Chelsea retain a long-standing interest in Garnacho, with their interest dating back to before the 2025 winter transfer window.
The young winger has made it clear that his preference would be to leave United for another Premier League team, ideally one in London.
However, as explained by transfer expert Fabrizio Romano, although Chelsea are following his situation closely, they are in advanced negotiations to sign Xavi Simons from RB Leipzig, who remains the priority option.
There have also been some tentative links to Tottenham, but the North London club are yet to register any concrete interest in the forward.
Garnacho’s transfer reality is not in London
While interest from London clubs does exist for the 21-year-old, the harsh truth is that, if he wants to stay in the Premier League, he may not be able to secure a move to the capital.
Instead, the reality for Garnacho is that the club who are best-placed to sign him are Aston Villa, with the Birmingham side keen on the winger and manager Unai Emery a particular fan.
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If Garnacho were to bite the bullet and agree to a move to Villa over the London clubs, who are less keen on him, he could hand Amorim a final parting gift.
United need a striker, and Villa’s Ollie Watkins has been touted as a “perfect” option for Amorim, although the club are not currently exploring further than an initial enquiry due to the costs involved.
However, if Garnacho were to indicate that he would be open to the Villa move, this would give United significant leverage to engineer a move for Watkins while significantly lowering the upfront costs, with Garnacho handing Amorim a perfect leaving gift in a seasoned Premier League striker.
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