Man City have been named as one of eight clubs interested in a loan deal with a purchase option for Man Utd winger Alejandro Garnacho, according to reports.
Red Devils boss Ruben Amorim chose to leave Garnacho and team-mate Marcus Rashford out of his 20-man squad to face Man City in their 2-1 Manchester Derby victory.
That result kept Man Utd in 13th position in the Premier League table but it did close the gap on Man City to just five points after 16 games, with the Red Devils finishing last season 31 points behind the Citizens.
It was a good result for Amorim but the Portuguese head coach, like many of his recent predecessors, has struggled to halt the inconsistency in performances and results.
Man Utd have been linked to a number of players ahead of the January transfer window with rumours Garnacho and Rashford could now leave Old Trafford in the winter market.
Garnacho was already attracting interest as one of the best prospects in world football but the winger could now reportedly leave on the Red Devils’ terms.
And now journalist Ekrem Konur insists that Man City and other clubs around the world are looking to sign Garnacho on loan with a €60m (£50m) purchase option.
Konur wrote on X: “Alejandro Garnacho has attracted interest from a European club to sign him on loan from Manchester United with a 60 million euro permanent purchase option.
“This club, as yet undisclosed, have stated Garnacho as their main transfer target to strengthen their squad due to his young age and performances. Interested Clubs: Atletico Madrid, Manchester City, FC Bayern Munich, Chelsea, FC Barcelona, Real Madrid, Juventus, Al Hilal.”
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Transfer expert Fabrizio Romano claimed on Thursday that there are “no concrete talks taking place” over his future at Man Utd.
Romano told GiveMeSport: “All quiet around Garnacho at the moment, no concrete talks taking place; he shares the same agent with Amad who’s close to extending his contract, so relationship is very good.”
Garnacho has struggled to impress under new Man Utd boss Amorim and former Red Devils assistant manager Rene Meulensteen insists the Argentina international doesn’t “suit” his system.
Meulensteen told Instant Casino: “I don’t think Alejandro Garnacho suits Ruben Amorim’s system. The wing-back position is completely different to being a winger – you must be good in both parts of the pitch whether you’re attacking or defending.
“I also don’t think he suits being in the front three of this system either as the two behind the striker are more advanced 8s or 10s, whereas Garnacho is more of a typical winger that wants to hog the line and get the ball to feet.
“It’s clear that Garnacho needs to adapt if he is to get into this team. If he learns how to play in that pocket and how to link with other players, then there still a possibility he could be part of the team because he’s a good player with good skills. If he doesn’t adapt, then we could see more of what happened in yesterday’s game.”
