Arsenal looked into signing Alejandro Garnacho from Manchester United this summer, before deciding against the move and turning to other targets.
Samuel Luckhurst reports for the Manchester Evening News that Arsenal were one of three clubs to decide against moving for Manchester United’s Alejandro Garnacho after looking into the signing this summer.
Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur, and Atletico Madrid all reportedly did due diligence on the potential deal, and all three ultimately turned him down and decided to look at other options.
Arsenal signed Noni Madueke, Spurs are looking at Savio of Manchester City, Atletico signed Alex Baena from Villarreal, and both Arsenal and Spurs are also interested in Eberechi Eze.
As a result, Chelsea are leading the race to sign Garnacho, with the club initially meeting with the player’s agents as long ago as the January transfer window.
Garnacho was told he could leave United in May, he was left out of their pre-season tour, and he’s been training separately from the first team this summer. A move seems inevitable, but nothing is agreed with Chelsea yet.
Garnacho appears to have talent, but he has struggled to deliver on it in recent seasons.
His attitude issues have been repeatedly highlighted during his time at United, and no one underperformed against their expected goals more than Garnacho in last season’s Europa League. He also underperformed by the same metric in the Premier League.
Maybe that’s a sign of a player about to explode, or maybe Garnacho is just an inconsistent finisher. Chelsea are seemingly willing to take the risk, but Arsenal, Spurs, and Atletico weren’t.