Alejandro Garnacho has dropped a bombshell on his Manchester United exit, labeling his final days at Old Trafford as “difficult” while hailing his last-minute £40m switch to Chelsea as the ultimate power move for his career—and his bank account.
The 21-year-old Argentine phenom bolted from United in a deadline-day drama, with the Red Devils snagging a sweet 10% sell-on clause in the deal. It was a mutual breakup both sides desperately wanted: Chelsea landed their top target, and United dumped an “unwanted asset” they’d been itching to offload.
Garnacho wasted no time making his mark at Stamford Bridge, bagging his first Premier League goal for the Blues in Saturday’s clash against newly-promoted Sunderland. Sadly, it wasn’t enough to prevent Enzo Maresca’s squad from slipping to a 2-1 defeat—but the statement was made.
Speaking candidly in Chelsea’s matchday programme, Garnacho didn’t hold back on why he pulled the trigger on the move. After a game-changing video call with Maresca, the winger knew ditching Manchester for London was the clutch decision to level up his game.
“Obviously, in my last season at United, with the new manager, there were a lot of changes in the situation at the club and it was a bit difficult,” Garnacho spilled. “I still played a lot of games last season, mainly from the start or sometimes from the bench.
“But when I spoke with this club, with the manager, it’s important also the style of play we have now. He explained a lot to me in a video call with him, so I think it was a very important move for me and an opportunity to improve as a player in a team like Chelsea.”
Garnacho’s north-west nightmare ended on a sour note, but he’s all-in on Chelsea now, eyeing trophies alongside fellow Argentine Enzo Fernandez. The duo’s bond? Already rock-solid.
“I know him from the national team, and he’s a very good guy,” Garnacho gushed. “I spoke with him during the summer all the time—he text me every week. Then we met again here and he has helped me a lot, to be honest, from the start of my time here, so now we are very good friends.”