Alejandro Garnacho made his first-ever Chelsea start in midweek during an EFL Cup fixture. At the moment, it definitely feels like he’s still getting up to full speed, which makes sense because of the summer he had at Manchester United.
After a couple of substitute appearances, Alejandro Garnacho came into the Chelsea starting line-up during Tuesday night’s 2-1 away victory against Lincoln City in the third round of the Carabao Cup.
The 21-year-old winger, who played just under an hour, did struggle to make his mark on the contest.
Like many people, Pat Nevin isn’t convinced by the Garnacho signing, so the Argentine youngster is under pressure to prove people wrong. It may not help that he has huge competition for places in the wide areas, and nailing down a permanent spot under head coach Enzo Maresca may be quite difficult.
Jamie O’Hara tells Enzo Maresca to play Alejandro Garnacho on the left wing
In Chelsea’s win at Lincoln, Garnacho started the contest on the left flank. He then ended up swapping with teammate Jamie Gittens to chance his arm on the right wing.
According to Jamie O’Hara, the Blues summer signing simply has to operate as a left-winger if he plays in Maresca’s team.
When discussing Chelsea’s Garnacho, O’Hara said on talkSPORT’s The Sports Bar (23 September): “I don’t think he’s a right-winger. I watched him at Man Utd. I don’t think he was very good on the right. He’s a player who likes to come inside. I don’t know why you would play him on the right.”
While we agree with the idea that Garnacho is most effective cutting infield from the left, the reality is he may need to adapt and become more versatile to make an impact in West London.
John Obi Mikel’s message to Garnacho is that he must improve his end product to cut it at Chelsea. For now, it feels way too early to be writing him off because he’s still playing himself into sharpness, but the warning signs are there that it could be a major test for him at Stamford Bridge.
Alejandro Garnacho struggled against Lincoln
It was a pretty forgettable display from Garnacho in the cup against League One side Lincoln. Thankfully for him, he was one of several individuals who had poor nights.
| Minutes played | Accurate passes | Touches | Key passes | Shots on target | Dribble attempts | Offsides |
| 59 | 16/16 (100%) | 26 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
If Garnacho wants to see how to get in Maresca’s good books, he should look at teammate Pedro Neto, who’s proven he can play anywhere across the frontline.
Neto, who’s been in brilliant form, looks an attacking threat from both the right and left wing.
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