Liam Rosenior, Chelsea’s head coach, has discussed the criticism winger Alejandro Garnacho has been receiving. He says that some of the criticism may be based on how Garnacho looks rather than how well he plays.
Garnacho moved from Manchester United to Chelsea in the summer for a set fee of £40 million. He signed a seven-year deal at Stamford Bridge, which runs until 2032. Before he left Old Trafford, the Argentine had scored 16 goals and set up eight more in 93 Premier League games for United.
However, his departure was anything but smooth. He was unhappy with former United manager Ruben Amorim after being left on the bench for the Europa League final against Tottenham. He had also been training away from the main squad at Carrington.
Rosenior says that the booing he often got while playing for United has followed him to Stamford Bridge. He added nice things about the winger’s character at his pre-match press conference, and insisted that the noise around him is mostly not deserved:
“Garna is a top player. He’s been training very well and showed real positivity when he came on against Arsenal. He was also magnificent against Hull in the FA Cup and had a huge impact in the game against Arsenal when he scored two goals in the Carabao Cup semi-final first leg.”
Rosenior also talked about a personal problem that Garnacho had recently gone through, saying that the winger chose to play through it without saying anything:
“He’s had a very difficult thing happen in his life recently — and rather than tell me about that, he wanted to put himself forward for a game. People make judgments based on the way people look. Garna is a really good character who works really hard every day in training.”
Chelsea Prepare for Crucial Aston Villa Clash in Race for Champions League
Chelsea’s next Premier League game is very important. They will play at Villa Park on Wednesday, March 4, with the game starting at 7:30 p.m. UK time. The Blues haven’t won a league game in three matches, which puts their chances of playing in the top European tournament next season in doubt.
Unai Emery’s Aston Villa also need a response after losing to Wolves, who are at the bottom of the table. If Villa win, they will be nine points ahead of Chelsea in the race for the top five. Chelsea, on the other hand, have a good record at Villa Park, having lost only three of their last 14 trips there.
Rosenior said that Garnacho is definitely in the running to start, saying that the winger is “more than knocking on the door.”